When does a blip become a slump? Pep Guardiola was asked this before the game and pointed to Manchester Cityâs supreme run of success. Now, their last three matches have been lost for the first time since April 2018 so Saturdayâs trip to Brighton is Âcertainly about arresting the slide.
Two years ago, Rúben Amorimâs Sporting were cuffed aside 5-0 in a grand City show of power football. This last home match of Manchester Unitedâs incoming manager ended in him becoming to sections of the Red Devils faithful, at least, the ânew Fergusonâ, as he prophesied would occur should their cross-town rival be downed.
After Viktor Gyökeres starred with a hat-trick, Amorimâs evening closed with a deserved lap of honour and his players giving him the bumps. He leaves Sporting driving their Champions League destiny on 10 points, while City are stuck on seven, and all with the 3-4-3 shape he brings to United when starting work on 11 November.
After Cityâs reverses to Tottenham and Bournemouth this was welcome succour. But fragility was evident in a Gyökeres raid that took him clear â and this was an augury, too, of what unfolded. Yet as Ederson advanced the Swede hoped to chip the goalkeeper, fluffed this and the ball was collected.
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Champions League roundup: Dortmund leave it late to beat Graz
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Borussia Dortmund left it late to secure a 1-0 win over Sturm Graz courtesy of Donyell Malen’s strike four minutes from time. The Dutch forward came off the bench in the 67th minute and combined with Serhou Guirassy before firing home to earn the hosts their third win from four games.
Thilo Kehrer stabbed home from close range in the 86th minute to lift Monaco into third, one place above Dortmund in the ‘league phase’ table as they earned a 1-0 win over Bologna. Both sides saw goals disallowed in the first half but the visitors got the winner to leave Bologna without a goal in four matches.
Dusan Vlahovic’s second-half penalty cancelled out Jonathan David’s opener as Juventus drew 1-1 with Lille. The French side threatened to follow up their home win over Real Madrid when David finished a quick counter, but Vlahovic levelled after Francisco Conçeicao was brought down in the area.
In the early games, Dinamo Zagreb earned a second consecutive victory in the competition with an emphatic 4-1 win over bottom club Slovan Bratislava, while PSV picked up their first Champions League win this season with a 4-0 home thrashing of Girona. PA Media/Reuters
Photograph: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images Europe
Guardiola has talked about his walking wounded and how this is all part of this seasonâs challenge. With Rúben Dias and John Stones on the injury list, the manager handed ÂJahmai Simpson-Pusey a full debut, 24 hours after the defender turned 19, and Gyökeresâs next act was to go at him along a left channel, the youngster robust enough to see the challenge off.
Before this, City threatened via two Foden corners and two Erling Haaland efforts. The first drew a Âflying Israel save, the second blazed off the Norwegianâs weaker right foot and wide.
City had Portugalâs champions in a familiar grip: hogging the ball and forcing them to live off scraps. When Israel dawdled playing out from the back, Haaland nearly mugged him. The next time Sporting tried, Savinho nicked in, and City had them by the jugular in a sequence that featured another Foden corner from which Josko Gvardiol went close.
Rúben Amorim, overseeing his final home game in Lisbon, celebrates with Viktor Gyökeres after the final whistle. Photograph: Zed Jameson/PA
As impressive was a back-to-front move that had Mateo Kovacic Âscheming along halfway and Rico Lewis slipping inside from right-back to set Savinho galloping through. Result: a cross meant for Haaland and one more Foden corner. His next was floated on to Haalandâs head and though he beat the airborne Israel the ball was cleared off the line.
City were a relentless force Âcowing their host with percussive pass play. Foden popped up down the left and swept in a delivery that Haaland swiped at on the volley and Israel repelled. The 72.9% ball-retention rate was the contest in microcosm. City were in shooting practice mode. Bernardo Silva shimmied through and unloaded to beat Israel but missed.
Gyökeres then broke â from ÂGeovany Quendaâs pass â and on reaching the area held off SimpsonâPusey and fashioned a Âdelightful sand-wedge over Ederson for 1-1. A carbon copy nearly arrived in ÂSportingâs next break beyond Cityâs high line but Francisco Trincãoâs composure failed and the forward blasted wide.
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City melted as, from virtually the second-half kick-off, ÂMaximiliano Araújo got in behind from Pedro ÂGonçalvesâs ball and beat Ederson. The visitors, stunned, were soon shocked. Gvardiol was the culprit, foolishly upending Trincão and the referee, Daniel Siebert, awarded a penalty. Gyökeres smashed this past Ederson and the stadium was a racket of noise.
For the first time in a long time City were being asked questions and they struggled to find answers. Even when Lewis drew a free-kick on the edge of Sportingâs area Fodenâs offering did not beat the wall. ÂGuardiola, in the technical area, was cast as impotent, while Amorim, on the other side, as the coach of cunning and control.
City never write themselves off but the conveyor belt of chances had stopped until Silva claimed a penalty when challenged by Ousmane ÂDiomande â via Siebert being ordered by the VAR to the sideline screen. To his anguish, and in the face of copious home whistles, Haaland crashed the spot-kick on to the bar.
From here, a long way back for those in blue and a famous final salvo on Sporting turf the prize for Amorim. The result was sealed when Matheus Nunes felled Geny Catamo and Gyökeres scored Sportingâs second penalty.
It proved to be Cityâs biggest defeat since a 5-2 reverse to Leicester in 2020 and for Amorim the finest of send-offs.
As Gyökeres said: âWe will miss him a lot. Weâve done amazing things together. We will miss him and the other guys in the staff who will leave. We have to look forward and attack the next challenge ahead of us.â
Trump wins red states Kentucky and Indiana; Harris picks up blue Vermont
The Associated Press has called its first states, and there are thus far no surprises.
Kamala Harris became the latest Democrat to win Vermont, a party stronghold. Donald Trump has won Indiana and Kentucky, both red states.
The AP has not yet called swing state Georgia, or Virginia and South Carolina.
Polls close in battleground Georgia, five other states
Voting just wrapped up in six states, including Georgia, one of the swing states expected to determine the winner of the presidential election.
In addition to the Peach State, polls closed at 7pm in red state South Carolina, blue state Vermont and Virginia, which is expected to vote Democratic but where there are several contested races for seats in the House of Representatives.
Polls that had remained open in Kentucky and Indiana, both red states, have also closed.
Georgia tends to count ballots quickly, so we may know the winner there before the night is through. Joe Biden won the state in 2020 and Democrats won both of its Senate seats, despite the state’s historically Republican tilt.
Sam Levine
Ana Mendoza, a 19-year-old political science major at Lehigh University, got in line to vote around 11am at her polling place. She didn’t cast her vote until six-and-a-half hours later.
She was one of many students who waited hours in line at a polling precinct that only had two working voting machines this morning, and two volunteers checking people in, according to school newspaper the Brown and White. The county has sent three additional voting machines to the site, according to the Allentown Morning Call.
“I’m in Pennsylvania and it’s a swing state so I know that every single vote matters,” she said.
Mendoza, who was voting in her first presidential election and cast her ballot for Kamala Harris, said she and those who were waiting were pretty tired by the end, but there were groups giving food and water out.
Philadelphia district attorney says Trump’s ‘cheating’ claim ‘unfounded’
Philadelphia’s Democratic district attorney Larry Krasner had this to say about Donald Trump’s claim that “cheating” was happening in elections held in the city:
My response to Trump’s unfounded allegation of cheating in Philly’s general election:
The only talk about massive cheating has come from one of the candidates, Donald J. Trump. There is no factual basis whatsoever within law enforcement to support this wild allegation. 1/2
We have invited complaints and allegations of improprieties all day. If Donald J. Trump has any facts to support his wild allegations, we want them now. Right now. We are not holding our breath. 2/2
A human error during Milwaukee’s absentee vote count could lead to a late night for election workers in the largest city in the state, and delayed results.
According to Vote Beat, an election observer noticed panels open on multiple tabulators which should have been closed and locked – revealing the machines’ on/off switches. Although election officials said it did not appear that anyone had touched the panels or tampered with the machines, the commission has moved to recount the 30,000 votes that those tabulators already processed.
The recount could mean a long night for Milwaukee election officials and lead to a possible late night boost for KamalaHarris, who will probably command a majority of the Milwaukee vote, which tends to be a Democratic party stronghold.
In 2020, Trump and his allies seized on late-night absentee votes as evidence of wrongdoing – a patently false claim that nonetheless contributed to a wave of misinformation.
Alice Herman
MJ, an 18-year-old from Milwaukee, voted for the first time today – splitting her ballot between Donald Trump, at the top of the ticket, and Democratic candidates all the way down.
“I’m mainly worried about economics,” said MJ, who cited immigration as her second top concern. She said she’s frustrated about the possibility of non-US citizens voting in this election – a claim that Trump and his allies have been promoting for months, despite the fact that empirical evidence suggests non-citizens, who face steep penalties for voting illegally, including felony charges and possible deportation, rarely cast a ballot in federal elections.
Evidently, those claims have stuck – including influencing MJ’s decision to vote Trump, despite preferring Democratic party candidates in general.
“I’m gonna vote all Democrat [otherwise],” said MJ. She said abortion rights are a major concern for her, and said she was “on the fence” about Trump for that reason.
MJ, 18, and Trump Voter, gets ready to Vote at the the Washington Park Senior Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Photograph: Caleb Alvarado/Caleb Alvarado for The Guardian
Rachel Leingang
According to CNN, Philadelphia police don’t know what Trump is talking about in his post alleging “cheating” in the city, and are not aware of any issues that would call for their response.
There was a semi-viral video spreading on the rightwing internet today. James O’Keefe, the guy who makes undercover videos that are often misleading or outright false, posted a video on X claiming that an election worker in Philadelphia told voters they could cast a ballot if they were not citizens. Accounts like Libs of TikTok spread the video to their followers.
Those who remember the 2020 election will recall that it took a few days before we knew for sure that Joe Biden had beaten Donald Trump.
But the result of previous elections was known much sooner, as the below chart shows:
How long does it take to call US presidential elections?
The year 2000 was when a very close race between Democrat Al Gore and Republican George W Bush came down to the state of Florida and a supreme court case that was decided in Bush’s favor, sending him to the White House.
George Chidi
Reporting from Fulton county, Georgia:
“We’re stuck in a position where we have to affirm this challenge,” said Aaron Johnson, the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections board’s vice-chair.
“A lot of people are getting caught up now.” Johnson said he knew this would happen. “We didn’t make the rule. The general assembly made the rule. Whether I agree with it or not, we have to follow the rule.”
“I’ve been voting with this address for years,” said Chante Knox, whose voter registration was challenged. She was homeless when she first registered. She’s a Republican and a Donald Trump voter, and has been skeptical of the county’s election administration, but this issue is separate from those concerns, she said.
“I’m still a Fulton County resident. I still want my vote to count,” she said. “I want a non-provisional vote for the president.”
Jack Samuels from the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights and the ACLU, said Swanson’s denial was the product of inadequate notice.
“Many of the persons being challenged have not received notice,” he said. “They did not know that they needed to oppose the challenge before today. Like all of us, they have work, family, child and senior care obligations that do not generally permit people to drop everything and drive as far as 40 miles across the county to appear. A hearing on insufficient notice deprives them of the right to vote in violation of their due process rights and equal protection and should not be occurring.”
Samuels demanded the right for Swanson to cast a provisional ballot, laying the groundwork for a legal appeal. “This hearing is not practical” for voters, he said.
George Chidi
Reporting from Fulton county, Georgia:
“I’ve been trying to vote since eight in the morning,” said John Whitfield, an entertainer who goes by DC Young Fly, animatedly contesting his removal from the voting rolls in Fulton County before the elections board.
He stood. He paced the room. His indignation radiated. He – and dozens of others – packed the hearing room in south Fulton on election day, thoroughly pissed off.
“I’m just trying to exercise my right to vote. This is critical,” he said aloud as the hearing proceeded. “If my ancestors didn’t fight for me to vote, I wouldn’t give a damn.”
The Georgia legislature changed election laws after the 2020 election, to bar voters from registering at commercial addresses like UPS stores.
One by one, bewildered people who showed up to vote this morning to find that they were de-registered under this law protested their removal at the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections, hoping to vote today.
Sheree Swanson, an actor from Sandy Springs, was challenged because she initially used a UPS store address as the address on her voter registration, the same address as a trucking company she owns, she said. Her vehicle insurance company required her driver’s license to have the same address as the address for her vehicle registration, she said. Swanson tried to change her addresses to match her home address last week, she said. That was too late.
“Her status is challenged because she listed her business as her residence,” said Katheryn Glenn, the board’s registration officer. “Don’t swear or affirm if you don’t live there.”
The board, by a 3-0 vote, denied her appeal.
John Richard Whitfield, known professionally as DC Young Fly, appealing a challenge to his voter registration. Photograph: Ben Rollins/The Guardian
How do we know who won? A guide to calling this election
Now that the first polls have closed, it’s a good time to talk about who the Guardian uses to determine the outcome of today’s vote.
The Guardian relies on the Associated Press to determine the outcomes of elections across the United States. The New York-based global news agency has a presence in every US state and a long and authoritative history of determining the winners of elections at the presidential, congressional and state level. Here is more information about their process.
election graphic
Voting finishes in parts of Kentucky and Indiana as first US polls close
The first polls have closed in the US, with voting wrapping up in most Indiana counties and in Kentucky’s eastern half.
Voting will finish in the rest of the two red states at 7pm, at which point it will also conclude in a handful of other states – including swing state Georgia.
Poll closing map
First polls soon to close in US election
We’re minutes away from the first polls closing anywhere in the United States.
Most counties in Indiana and several in eastern Kentucky will wrap up voting at 6pm ET. Both generally vote Republican and not considered swing states this year. Voting in the remaining counties will finish at 7pm.
Alice Herman
Reporting from Milwaukee, Wisconsin:
Serina Jones, 30, pulled over her minivan in West Milwaukee and flagged down a canvasser walking down the street in a reflective jacket.
“Are you all doing voter stuff?” she asked.
Jones, who is a mother of three, had not registered to vote yet but was determined to cast a ballot – and had plans to get her husband to the polls, too.
After plugging in her address and making a plan to vote, she told me she has “mixed feelings” about the election.
“I’m fired up,” said Jones, who is voting for Kamala Harris and said she worried about the consequences of a second Donald Trump presidency for her three children’s education and livelihood.
“But I have a lot riding on this,” she said. “I’m trying to make sure we got a future for our babies.”
Poll workers help people sign up to vote at a polling place at Riverview Apartments in Milwaukee, Wisconsin today. Photograph: Alex Wroblewski/AFP/Getty Images
Republican Philadelphia official says ‘no truth’ to Trump’s claim of election fraud
Seth Bluestein, a Republican Philadelphia city commissioner, called Donald Trump’s claim of “cheating” in the city “disinformation”, and said the vote so far has been “safe and secure”.
Bluestein is one of three officials on the board tasked with overseeing voting in Philadelphia. Here’s what he had to say:
There is absolutely no truth to this allegation. It is yet another example of disinformation. Voting in Philadelphia has been safe and secure. pic.twitter.com/wMiPnAgO17
We have been in regular contact with the RNC. We have been responsive to every report of irregularities at the polls to ensure Philadelphians can vote safely and securely.
Harris campaign sees high Puerto Rican turnout in Pennsylvania
Philadelphia neighborhoods where many Puerto Ricans live have seen high voter turnout, the Harris campaign says, after a speaker at a Donald Trump rally last month referred to the US territory as “a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean”.
It could be a positive sign for the vice-president’s chances of winning Pennsylvania, perhaps the most vital of the three “Blue Wall” swing states along the Great Lakes. Victories in the Keystone state along with Michigan and Wisconsin would probably provide enough electoral votes to make Harris the next president.
The campaign also sees high turnout by students at universities nationwide, including in Pennsylvania. In battleground state North Carolina, fewer rural Republicans appear to have voted, but many people have cast ballots in the Democratic-leaning city of Durham.
Voters walk past signs and supporters as they cast their votes at the polling station in Philadelphia today. Photograph: David Muse/EPA
Joan E Greve
Democrats are counting on young voters to turn out at the polls today to help deliver wins for not just Kamala Harris but congressional candidates and ballot measures across the country.
“Young people will decide this election. From local ballot initiatives to federal races, we know this critical bloc is showing up for their futures and making their voices heard,” said Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez, president of the youth voting group NextGen America.
According to NextGen’s data, the group registered more than 130,000 young voters this election cycle, while more than 171,000 young voters signed pledges to vote.
“We are proud of our work this cycle on-the-ground and online to educate, mobilize, and empower young voters, contributing to a culture of civic engagement that will extend beyond this election,” Ramirez said.
“Young people are showing up, turning out, and using their collective power to elect leaders that represent our values – today and into the future.”
We officially now have had a goal in every game tonight after the Monaco captain scores from his first touch after a corner comes in at the far post.
Monaco’s Thilo Kehrer steers the ball home to open the scoring late in the game at Bologna. Photograph: Alberto Pizzoli/AFP/Getty Images
GOAL! Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Sturm (Malen 85)
Finally! Malen hammers straight into the corner after being played in by Guirassy. Dortmund really should have wrapped this up ages ago. VAR takes a look but the goal is given quickly.
Borussia Dortmund’s Donyell Malen thumps a shot goalwards ⦠Photograph: Leon Kuegeler/ReutersWhich flies past Sturm’s goalkeeper Kjell Scherpen (right) and Emanuel Aiwu to open the scoring. Photograph: Martin Meissner/AP
GOAL! Sporting 4-1 Manchester City (Gyökeres 80 pen)
Well this was unexpected.Nunes pulls back Catamo in the box (a gift for his former club, maybe?) and Gyökeres shows Haaland how itâs done from the spot (again).
Sporting Viktor Gyokeres scores their fourth goal from the penalty spot past Manchester City’s Ederson and completes his hat-trick. Photograph: Andrew Boyers/Action Images/ReutersSporting’s players celebrate. Photograph: Filipe Amorim/AFP/Getty Images
GOAL! Real Madrid 1-3 Milan (Reijnders 73)
Statement from Milan! Leão on the left evades a challenge and surges forward before finding Reijnders completely unmarked in the box. The pass is behind the goalscorer but he takes a funny little half-flick touch before finishing it off. Not sure how many times Real Madridâs defence is going to pretend that they ⦠do not have to defend.
Milan’s Tijjani Reijnders celebrates scoring their third goal in front of despondent looking Real Madrid fans. Photograph: Susana Vera/Reuters
GOAL! Celtic 3-1 RB Leipzig (Hatate 72)
Oh no! Itâs a mistake from Gulacsi and Hatate cannot believe his luck. The RB Leipzig keeper opts to first parry a ball in before deciding to catch it but he makes the decision too late and the midfielderâs quick thinking and quick feet forces an instint finish! Could this be the marquee victory Celtic have needed in this competition?
Celtic’s Reo Hatate (left) pounches to extend the home sideâs lead. Photograph: Andrew Milligan/PA
PENALTY MISS! Sporting 3-1 Manchester City
Drama in Lisbon! Silva takes a shot that hits the arm of Diomande, who is diving down trying to block the shot. It goes to VAR who deem it a penalty due to Diomandeâs arm being in an âunnatural positionâ (our favourite words here on the Guardian sports desk).
The boos and the whistles are deafening as Haaland stands over the ball and his effort hits the bar. Pandemonium for all the Sporting fans!
Erling Haalandâs penalty clanks against the woodwork. Photograph: Pedro Nunes/Reuters
Liverpool have just scored twice at Anfield against the German champions ⦠Follow along with Rob Smythâs MBM.
Rúben Amorim beating Pep and Man City before he even moves to Old Trafford wouldnât be very sporting.
Gory on what the Lisbon faithful favour:
I think Sporting fans prefer Sporting CP (Club Portugal) or simply Sporting to Sporting Lisbon but you know what thought did – followed a muck cart because he thought it was a wedding.
And Krishna with the correction:
Arajuoâs shot is indeed powerful if it can evade Everton!
Yikes from me! Has been fixed â¦
GOAL! Sporting 3-1 Manchester City (Gyökeres 49 pen)
Well then. Twenty seconds after the kick-off from Sportingâs goal, Gvardiol fouls Trincão in the box after pushing him from behind and Gyökeres fires the penalty straight into the bottom right corner. Do City even have the best Scandinavian striker anymore?
Sportingâs Viktor Gyokeres sends Ederson the wrong way for his second goal of the game. Photograph: Zed Jameson/PA
GOAL! Sporting 2-1 Manchester City (Araújo 46)
Weâre back underway and 20 seconds later Sporting are in front! The hosts pass the ball around and Gonçalves feeds a neat ball to Araújo, whose powerful shot evades Ederson.
Maximiliano Araújo puts Sporting ahead against Manchester City. Photograph: David Ramos/Uefa/Getty Images
Some half-time emails!
I reckon Steve will get some calls from some producers soon for this idea:
So Noel Gallagherâs on co-comms for the game. No doubt Rod The Mod will be doing the Celtic game?
Peter has apparently just learned poker:
Pep Guardiola may boast a Norwegian ace, but Ruben Amorim has got a Gyökeres up his sleeve.
Krishna with the analysis:
It is foolish to write off Real Madrid, more so when you have Carlo at the helm. But have they started to appear less invincible this season. Mbappeâs curse?
They have looked weaker but a part of me wants to say they always do this. They will probably go on and win their 567th CL in May. That being said, they have now trailed in each of their last three European matches – Lille, Dortmund and now Milan.
Paul with the correction:
TNT continually refer to Sporting CP as Sporting Lisbon in their TV coverage. Ask any Sporting fan and theyâll be pretty upset by that â basic error!! You guys are not doing it though!!
Not sure what you mean?? Anyway, I will use half-time to catch up on the latest Edu news coming out of London Arsenal London.
And Robin is uninterested in all of this:
Iâve reached the point of not caring less about any of the results in the Champions League. When we reach the last two rounds, it might have jeopardy for a couple of teams, but it already feels like an awful lot of ties where the results have very little consequence.
Do I have a half-time read for you. Check it out below.
Half-time scores
The half-time whistle has blown across the grounds. Here is where we stand:
GOAL! Celtic 2-1 RB Leipzig (Kühn 45+1)
What a time to get a second goal! Fantastic counterpress from Celtic in the right hand corner is perfect, suffocating the visitors. Itâs a perfect ball from Taylor which finds Kühn and he only has one goal in mind. Celtic Parkâs roof might just fly off from the noise.
Nicolas Kúhn (centre) wheels away in celebration after scoring his, and Celticâs, second goal of the night. Photograph: Andrew Milligan/PA
GOAL! Real Madrid 1-2 Milan (Morata 39)
Again, no defence in sight for the hosts and the Italian side are happy to capitalise. The striker is quick to react after Leãoâs chance and puts his side ahead with a goal into an empty net. He does love a goal against Real Madrid, that you cannot deny.
Alvaro Morata (right) slots the ball past Real Madridâs keeper Andriy Lunin to give Milan the lead for the second time in the match. Photograph: Manu Fernández/AP
GOAL! Sporting 1-1 Manchester City (Gyökeres 38)
Heâs had a poor opening half but the striker does what he has time and time again â show up in the big moments. Quenda finds Gyökeres with a weighted and he outpaces Simpson-Pusey before equalising.
Sporting Viktor Gyökeres lifts the ball over Manchester Cityâs keeper Ederson to put the home side back on level terms. Photograph: Andrew Boyers/Action Images/ReutersThen celebrates. Photograph: Rodrigo Antunes/EPA
GOAL! Celtic 1-1 RB Leipzig (Kühn 35)
Beautiful strike from Kühn, who gets the ball far on the right, dribbles inside and is given all the time to hit one as the ball hits the inside of the post before surging in.
Nicolas Kühn (left) fine finish puts Celtic back on level terms. Photograph: Andrew Milligan/PAKühn celebrates. Photograph: Andrew Milligan/PA
GOAL! Lille 1-0 Juventus (David 27)
A fantastic through ball from Zhegrova finds the striker who surges forward and finishes with his right foot at the far post. The assist takes three Juve players out of the game and makes it the goal of the night so far.
GOAL! Celtic 0-1 RB Leipzig (Baumgartner 23)
The hosts have impressed but it all comes undone from a corner. Kamplâs inswinging corner is deflected off a Celtic head before it finds Baumgartner who nods it past Schmeichel before the keeper can even react.
RB Leipzig’s Christoph Baumgartner ghosts in and puts a header goalwards ⦠Photograph: Russell Cheyne/ReutersAnd past Kasper Schmeichel to open the scoring. Photograph: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
GOAL! Real Madrid 1-1 Milan (VinÃcius Jr 23 pen)
The Brazilian is brought down in the box by Emerson in what is a clear foul and he dinks a cool penalty down the middle to level it in Madrid.
Milan’s Emerson Royal brings down Real Madrid’s VinÃcius Junior. Photograph: Susana Vera/ReutersVinÃcius Junior (left) levels the scores from the penalty spot. Photograph: Manu Fernández/APWhich heâs quite happy about. Photograph: Juanjo Martin/EPA
Bologna 0-0 Monaco: The ball is in the back of the net but it is disallowed after a VAR check after Singo fouls Skorupski.
GOAL! Real Madrid 0-1 Milan (Thiaw 12)
Madridâs defence is caught sleeping as Thiaw rises above everyone in the box and thumps a header straight past Courtois from a perfect Pulisic corner for his first goal for the club.
Pulisic is having some season so far in Italy â that is now seven goals and four assists in all competitions this season.
Milan’s Malick Thiaw (second left) wheels away in celebration after opening the scoring. Photograph: Susana Vera/Reuters
Sporting 0-1 Manchester City:Huge chance for the hosts that they fail to capitalise on. City lose the ball and Gyökeres runs onto the pass to counters. He is 1v1 against Ederson but his shot is straight into the keeperâs hands. Why did he not go round him there?!
GOAL! Sporting 0-1 Manchester City (Foden 4)
So sloppy from Morita. Heâs easily disposed by Foden and the City midfielder is able to run onwards and strike the opener. Strange from Israel. The goalkeeper thinks his defender will block the shot and he completely mistimes his attempted save.
Welcome to Manchester, Amorim.
Phil Foden fires the visitors into an early lead. Photograph: Justin Setterfield/Getty ImagesFoden celebrates with Erling Haaland. Photograph: Pedro Nunes/Reuters
Kick-off across the grounds
After a moment of silence for the flood victims in Valencia we are underway across the grounds. Here we go!
Results from the two early kick-offs:
Letâs take a look at some fun stats â one for each of the late games:
Erling Haaland needs one goal to reach the landmark figure of 45 goals in the Champions League. He could achieve that tonight on what is only his 43rd appearance in the tournament. The fastest player to 45 goals remains Ruud van Nistelrooy, who reached the milestone on his 56th outing.
Kasper Schmeichel celebrates his 38th birthday today, becoming the joint oldest player to feature in a Champions League game on his birthday, joining former Arsenal goalkeeper, David Seaman, who started against Schalke in September 2001.
Borussia Dortmund have won their past 10 games in all competitions at their home ground, and are unbeaten in their past 11. But they have lost three of their previous 18 in the Champions League at home.
Monaco have won just three of their last 15 European meetings against Italian opposition.
This is the first ever meeting between Lille and Juventus in any competition.
Alistair Johnston tells TNT Sports his rallying cry for his Celtic teammates: still be in Europe at the turn of the year.
Celtic Park on a Champions League night. There is nothing like it. I am not even sure if the noise made is humane. Itâs impossible to not get shivers up your spine.
Four points after three matches and we have a chance to put ourselves in the drivers seat. There is huge ambition within this group. We do want to be playing in Europe in January. It is a big aim for us this year. Itâs not going to be easy but matches like this give you a great opportunity for it.
Our first email of the night comes from Krishna:
Hasnât anyone told Amorim that the moniker for OT has changed to Theatre of Nightmares? Or doesnât he follow football? Who in his right mind would walk into the quicksand that is further made unstable by the blue whirlpool circling it relentlessly?
The very best will of course want a challenge and he clearly thinks he can be the guy to turn it around. Many close to him can attest to the fact that he is a young, fresh, manager on the way up, with vision and drive and personality.
But the worry is that it is somehow bigger than Amorim and Erik ten Hag and all the others before him. Is there simply something about the United job that is just too big, too difficult, too chaotic? Letâs see.
Xabi Alonsoâs Anfield homecoming is set to be special, as the former Reds midfielder returns with the German champions Bayer Leverkusen. In an alternate universe Alonso could have been the one on home teamâs touchline as he was linked once Jürgen Klopp announced his departure. But he doesnât have time for ifs and maybes.
Letâs talk about the game tomorrow, itâs more interesting than my future. It feels great to be back after a few years. Itâs always special. You notice the development of the club, the new stands look pretty amazing. Is a big game against Liverpool in a great moment, it cannot get much better than that.
I am not thinking that much [about how he will be received]. I am thinking more about how to prepare for the game. I might think about my memories when I go for a walk or a run tomorrow. I know the city, I love it and I still have friends here, but I donât have time for tourism.
Read Andy Hunterâs preview below.
And follow my colleague Rob Smythâs MBM of the match in Liverpool here.
Brendan Rodgers has called Celtic fans who use fireworks selfish and has reiterated his call for supporters to stop using pyrotechnics, with the Bonfire Night Champions League visit of RB Leipzig raising fears of a Uefa ban.
Supportersâ use of fireworks during last monthâs 7-1 defeat by Borussia Dortmund led to Celtic being fined by Uefa and told their fans will be banned from attending an away fixture if there is another such incident within two years. The warning was heeded when Celtic drew away to Atalanta two weeks ago, but kick-off was delayed at Saturdayâs Scottish League Cup semi-final against Aberdeen after yet another Celtic pyro display. Uefa is keeping a close eye on the matter.
Itâs just exactly what we said before, itâs not something that we really want to see. Thereâs that sanction hanging over the club and we really donât want that.
Read more on Rodgersâ thoughts below.
The two 5.45pm GMT kick-offs are heading into the final 20 minutes and here is how things stand.
PSV lead Girona 2-0 with Ryan Flamingoâs header from a throw-in opening their account before Malik Tillman doubled their lead drilling a powerful, right-footed effort after some fine dribbling skills. A second yellow for Arnau MartÃnez means a comeback for the Spaniards is unlikely.
Slovan striked early after David Strelec got on the end of a counterattack but the hosts now trail Dinamo 1-3 after goals from Dario Spikic, Petar Sucic and Sandro Kulenovic.
Here is a sneak peak of David Squiresâs latest cartoon on Manchester Unitedâs hive mind choosing Rúben Amorim.
Dream come true! Illustration: David Squires/The Guardian
Check out the full cartoon below.
The current Champions League table as it stands. Aston Villa top with nine points from three games, naturally.
A reminder as to how the new rules of the competition work. At the end of the league phase, the top eight teams will advance to the round of 16. Teams 9-16 will advance to knockout phase playoffs (seeded) and teams 17-24 will advance to knockout phase playoffs (unseeded). The bottom 12 will be eliminated from Europa and will none will drop to the Europa League (unlike previous seasons).
Preamble
Any hopes Rúben Amorim might have had for a peaceful send-off from Sporting have well and truly disappeared. The Manchester United-bound manager got his first taste of the British press when he was hounded for not answering a question in English (though he handling the scrutiny with a calmness).
Tonight, he faces Pep Guardiolaâs Manchester City in what could be seen as his unofficial audition for the United faithful. A win against their arch-rivals who have dominated in recent years would make Amorim an instant favorite at Old Trafford, though heâs careful not to let expectations get too high.
And if he loses? Some will surely overreact, but the reality is that a Sporting win over the English champions would be a genuine upset. For now, tonightâs clash in Lisbon offers many fans their first real look at Amorimâs style of play and a chance to imagine how it might translate to the Premier League.
Donald Trump has been told by some advisers that he should prematurely declare victory on election night if he’s sufficiently ahead of Kamala Harris in key battleground states like Pennsylvania, according to people close to him, though whether he will heed that advice remains unclear.
The consensus view is that Trump has nothing to lose by claiming he has won if he has a several-hundred-thousand-vote advantage in Pennsylvania or if his internal pollsters think a victory is plausible even if the results are not fully confirmed on Tuesday night.
But even Trump’s most pugnacious allies – including the former White House strategist Steven Bannon who spoke with him last week, one of the people said – have suggested he hold off making a pronouncement if the race is any closer by the time he goes to bed, lest it makes him look foolish.
In the final days of the campaign, Trump and his campaign have projected confidence. It has raised expectations among his supporters that he will win, laying the groundwork for baselessly claiming the election was stolen if he loses and Harris takes the White House. Any premature declaration of victory would also probably play into that phenomenon.
The wild-card factor in what Trump might do on election night remains Trump himself. His aides concede that if Trump decides he wants to declare, he will do as he pleases, and his travel-weary team might have little appetite and influence to dissuade him.
Trump’s team collectively shrugging at the prospect of the former president prematurely proclaiming himself the winner, as he did in the aftermath of the 2020 election, is itself notable as it underscores yet another norm of presidential politics shattered by Trump.
Trump declaring prematurely would not carry the element of surprise it had four years ago. The Harris campaign have said they are preparing for him to pull such a stunt again.
Trump has spoken less this time around about what he plans to do on election night, the people said, in contrast to his premeditation in the 2020 election when he told friends and allies of his intention to declare victory regardless of the outcome.
Trump dodged questions about his intentions as he cast his own ballot on Tuesday.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen in terms of declaring victory,” Trump said. “It looks like we have a very substantial lead. It looks like we have many more Republicans voting than Democrats. So if you have a lead and a bigger vote it means you’re doing well but they have to call a winner. And they should call a winner.”
But whether it is a product of the advisers around him tamping down on the kind of plotting that set into motion attempts to overturn the election results or the logistics of the news media being at a different venue from his private watch party, Trump has been quieter about his intentions.
Trump will watch the results come in at a private watch party at his Mar-a-Lago club for members, donors and other friends and family, while the official campaign watch party takes place a short drive away at a convention center in West Palm Beach, Florida, the people said.
The private watch party starts earlier and Trump is likely to project to members that he is winning, the people said. That event at Mar-a-Lago has also been described as a knife fight, with allies knocking off donors’ names from the list to get credentials for themselves.
Whether Trump will double down on any victory claim at the convention center party remains unclear. Trump’s aides have suggested if he does decide to announce himself as the winner, he will motorcade over from Mar-a-Lago, and if not, he might not make an appearance at all.
Read more of the Guardian’s 2024 US election coverage
The Irish mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor raped a woman in a Dublin hotel, the city’s high court has been told.
Nikita Ní Laimhín is claiming civil damages against McGregor and another man, alleging she was sexually assaulted in 2018.
But, the court heard on Tuesday, McGregor’s lawyers say Ní Laimhín, who has no automatic right to anonymity, is attempting extortion.
The fighter, nicknamed “Notorious”, was in court to hear Justice Alexander Owens tell the jury it is alleged Ní Laimhín was sexually assaulted by McGregor and James Lawrence on 9 December.
The judge said it was alleged that the pair had “in effect raped her”.
The court was told McGregor collected Ní Laimhín, a hairdresser in Dublin, and her friend after a Christmas party on 8 December.
John Gordon SC for Ní Laimhín said that she and McGregor were known to each other as they were in the same age group, from the same area and had mutual friends and had been in contact at various times through social media.
At the time she lived in the Dublin suburb of Drimnagh with her partner and seven-year-old daughter. She had been out with friends on the night of the alleged incident.
Gordon said McGregor was “enormously famous” and was considered a “hero” around Drimnagh.
He claimed that his client was “no angel” and “doesn’t pretend to be an angel”. On the night, she had been drinking and had taken some cocaine. The court also heard that she suffered from depression and had been on antidepressants.
The court was told that later on in the night, Ní Laimhín and two of her friends returned to her salon, where they continued to party and at some point she contacted McGregor. He collected her and her friend in his car, and Ní Laimhín understood they were to be taken to another party.
McGregor sat in the back seat with the two women, while his driver took them around housing estates and beeped the horn. They later went to the home of Lawrence, who joined them in the car.
The court was told that McGregor had a bag of cocaine, which was shared between him, Ní Laimhín and her friend.
Ní Laimhín, McGregor, his security team and others then went to a penthouse suite in the Beacon hotel in Dublin. The court was told that they were all drinking and laughing.
At one point, McGregor allegedly went into a bedroom and beckoned Ní Laimhín to join him. The court was told that McGregor “came on to her”, but she did not want to have sexual intercourse with him as she was on her period.
Gordon told the court that she alleged that McGregor pinned her down on the bed and that she was no physical match for him. “She will tell you that she was nervous, that she tried to push him off her but she was completely unable to do so,” he added.
“You will see pictures of her hands and wrists, which are black and blue. You will see that her left breast has a bloodied scratch. The scratch is there because she was wearing a watch and had her hands up to protect herself. She was pressed down on and the watch scarred her breast.
“Mr McGregor then flips her over and puts her arm in a lock and draws her up by the neck. She can’t breathe. And he does it again.
“By the third time he does it, she gives up. She can’t resist this any more. In the course of this he says: ‘Now you know what it was like to be in the Octagon when I went down three times.’
“She was at this point completely terrified. She subjected herself to what was about to happen, which was a violent and vicious assault.”
It is alleged later that she had sex with Lawrence, but Gordon said she had no recollection of such an event ever happening.
Ní Laimhín later went home and visited her mother, who called 999. She was taken to hospital in an ambulance. The court was told that she was shaking and in pain while being transferred to hospital.
Gordon said: “In the face of this, Mr McGregor will tell you that this was a consensual encounter, that they were just having fun and a bit of rough sex. That’s his answer.
“What did I say about common sense? Don’t be fooled into leaving it behind in this [court] room. What he is saying is that she gave him a licence to carry out what has to have been a brutal assault on her body.”
The court also heard from Dr Daniel Keane, who works as a gynaecologist as well as a forensic examiner in sexual assault cases.
He told the court he was working at the emergency department at the Rotunda hospital in Dublin when Ní Laimhín was brought in by ambulance.
Keane said she was “very upset”, and was “shaking and crying”. He told the court how they had to get a blanket for her to sit on because of the pain she was in.
In his report, he said Ní Laimhín had told him that morning that the alleged attacker had her by the neck and that he had stopped her from breathing. He told the court that she had claimed she did not fight him any more and thought he was going to kill her.
Keane detailed extensive bruising across Ní Laimhín’s body, including her face, arms, fingers, forearms, knuckles, legs, lower back and buttocks. She also had a 9cm scratch on her left breast.
Her also stated that Ní Laimhín was worried about a tampon she had been wearing on the night. He explained how he had to use forceps to remove the tampon, which had been “wedged inside”.
He told the court that he had carried out hundreds of examinations on women, and said the extent of bruising on Ní Laimhín was “quite unusual”.
The defence claimed in the evidence booklet that Ní Laimhín had several opportunities to complain to people about how she was treated but did not. It would also claim that Ní Laimhín was engaged in an attempt at extortion, the court heard.
Gordon said his client was being called a “gold digger and a fraud”, adding: “Brave. But where is the bravery in this? Bravery ultimately sits with my client.
“Because she pursued her mission for vindication and compensation to which she is entitled. And for these defendants to breezily and cheekily dispose of her claim is something you will consider in due course.”
Earlier the jury was sworn in at the high court and told that they were judges of fact as to what happened and would have to draw a conclusion, and it would be based on their decision.
First results expected after 18.00 EST (15.00 PDT or 23.00 GMT)
How does the US election work?
The winner of the election is determined through a system called the electoral college.
What is the electoral college and how does it work?
Each of the 50 states, plus Washington DC, is given a number of electoral college votes, adding up to a total of 538 votes. More populous states get more electoral college votes than smaller ones.
A candidate needs to win 270 electoral college votes (50% plus one) to win the election.
In every state except two – Maine and Nebraska – the candidate that gets the most votes wins all of the state’s electoral college votes.
Electoral college votes correspond to electors from each state. These electors vote directly for the president, based on the results in the general election in their state. In early January, following the presidential election, Congress convenes in a joint session to count and certify the electoral votes.
How do people vote in the US election?
Elections in the US are administered by each state. Whether by mail-in ballots or voting in person on election day, people effectively vote in 51 mini-elections in the presidential election.
Due to the electoral college rules, a candidate can win the election without getting the most votes at the national level. This happened in 2016, when Trump won a majority of electoral college votes although more people voted for Hillary Clinton across the US.
A handful of races are run with a ranked choice voting system, whereby voters can rank candidates in their order of preference. If no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, then the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and their supporters’ votes will be counted for their next choice. The Guardian has marked these elections where applicable above, and shows the results of the final result with redistributed votes.
How are the votes counted?
Vote verification and counting involves many processes to ensure oversight and security, and it runs before, during and after election day.
As soon as the polls close, local precincts count the ballots cast in person on election day, alongside any absentee or mail-in ballots that have been verified. Processes vary by state, but typically this involves verifying mail-in voter signatures and ensuring ballots are properly filled out. Provisional ballots, used when there are questions about a voter’s eligibility, are set aside for later verification.
Verified ballots are then counted, usually digitally but in some cases manually. The counts are then transmitted to county election offices for aggregation and verification.
This process involves thousands of local election officials who are either appointed or elected, depending on the state. Partisan and nonpartisan observers can monitor vote counting.
State election authorities then compile the county-level results and, after another round of verification, certify the final results.
Results are communicated through media – the Guardian receives results data from the Associated Press.
Official results can take days or weeks to be fully finalised. This is often because of the verification process of absentee, mail-in and provisional ballots. In some states, mail-in ballots can be received and counted several days after election day. High voter turnouts and potential recounts in close races can also slow down results publication.
How are the results reported?
The election results on this page are reported by the Associated Press (AP). AP “call” the winner in a state when they determine that the trailing candidate has no path to victory. This can happen before 100% of votes in a state have been counted.
Estimates for the total vote in each state are also provided by AP. The numbers update throughout election night and in the following days, as more data on voter turnout becomes available.
Illustrations by Sam Kerr. Cartograms by Pablo Gutiérrez.
Standing in blinding sunlight on an archipelago above the Arctic Circle, the photographer Christian à slund looked in shock at a glacier he had last visited in 2002. It had almost completely disappeared.
Two decades ago Greenpeace asked à slund to use photographs taken in the early 20th century, and photograph the same views in order to document how glaciers in Svalbard were melting due to global heating. The difference in ice density in those pictures, taken almost a century apart, was staggering.
This summer he visited those same places again, 22 years later, to find that the glaciers had visibly shrunk again.
âIn 2002, climate change wasnât as well known as it is now, so that was a compete shock when we saw it,â he says. âAnd then I didnât know what to expect going back this time. But seeing all the glaciers, we really saw the difference from these last 22 years. There is a massive amount of glacier ice that has disappeared.â
The disappearance of glaciers was one of the first signs that global heating caused by fossil fuel burning was rapidly affecting conditions on Earth. âIt is sad,â says à slund, âespecially when youâre holding the historical picture in your hand and you see the whole fjord was from the glaciers and where the glaciers met, and youâre standing in the landscape when they were almost gone, in the same fjords.â
The glacier pictured in 1918, with a man in a boat approaching it, and 2024Archive image from Kongsfjorden with the glacier Blomstrandbreen in the background in 1918. Then a picture taken in the same location by à slund on 27 August 2024.
The weather during his visit was also strikingly warm. âWhen we were there it was the hottest month ever recorded for that area. So you are standing in the Arctic in a T-shirt and the glaciers are almost gone, and that is sad. It is heating up at a rapid speed, the Arctic. I did expect a retreat of the glacier but not as much as we encountered. It was a shock.â
This summer, Svalbardâs glaciers melted at their fastest rate since records began. On one day alone, according to work from the University of Liège, Svalbard shed about 55mm of water equivalent, a rate five times larger than normal. If this particular range of glaciers fully melted, they would raise the sea level by 1.7cm. But worryingly, the temperature there has rocketed higher than most of the rest of the world; recent estimates say it has heated by 4C in the last 30 years.
But à slund determinedly continues to feel hopeful. âI donât feel powerless because we have a hope that we can turn this around. No one can do everything, but we as individuals can all do small things to prevent climate change. My contribution is to highlight what is actually going on there. It is more visible there than most other places on Earth as it is melting in a rapid speed. It will continue to melt until we as a society do something drastically to stop this.â
The comparison images are so shocking that when they were first published in 2002, people accused him of faking them. They said he had either doctored the new images or that he had visited in summer and the old pictures were taken in winter. People did not want to believe they were real.
âThat has been going on since 2002 when it was first published. The pictures were criticised for being doctored with images or taken in the wrong season, but a glacier is not affected that much from a winter season to a summer season. Itâs not like snow or ice where it melts away and comes back.â
A man looking through binoculars above the glacier in 1966 and the image recreated in 2024Archive image of a man standing on a peak on the island of Blomstrandøya in Kongsfjorden during a research trip in 1966, with the glacier Blomstrandbreen visible in the background. At the time it was thought to be a peninsula, but after the glacier melted it was realised that it was an island. Then an image taken in the same location by à slund, with a Greenpeace crew member in the foreground, on 23 August 2024.
In reply to suggestions that the pictures were taken at different times of year, he says: âIf itâs the winter time it is complete darkness in Svalbard so these pictures would not be possible.
âI donât know why people do not want to believe it is true. I just think some people have problems accepting science, listening to the scientists, and they would rather want to believe itâs fake than real.â
à slund hopes that his images will help spur people and governments into action and humanity tackles the climate crisis before all glaciers are lost. âI hope this photo series will be published as a reminder of what is going on. And then I will go back, maybe in 20 yearsâ time, to see the difference from now and hopefully it wonât be as bad.â
Black-and-white photograph of the glaciers.Image contains stitched photographs to create a panorama, showing the Kongsvegen and Pedersenbreen glaciers merging and surrounding the mountain of Nielsenfjellet outside Ny à lesund, Svalbard.
Thousands of giant spiders that can grow to the size of a human hand are thriving in the UK, thanks to a successful breeding programme from Chester zoo.
The fen raft spider is a harmless arachnid that plays a vital role in aquatic ecosystems, but 15 years ago was on the brink of extinction because of habitat loss.
Chester zoo worked with the RSPB to raise hundreds of baby spiders, keeping them separate in test tubes so that they did not eat one another.
The spiders were hand-fed with tweezers in the zoo’s bio-secure breeding facility until they were big enough to be released into the wild.
This year, the spiders have had their best mating season on record, Chester zoo said, with the RSPB estimating that there are 10,000 breeding females across the UK.
According to London zoo, the stretched-out leg span of a fen raft spiders is typically 65-70mm – roughly the width of a human palm or the length of a newborn rat.
The zoo was also involved in the breeding programme, along with other members of BIAZA, the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
The spiders were hand-reared between 2011 and 2013, and later released into the wild. Chester zoo said it had helped to release “thousands” 10 years ago, adding “you can’t miss them, they grow to be the size of your hand!”
“We’re super proud to be part of this conservation breeding rescue programme, working alongside our friends at the RSPB to prevent the extinction of the fen raft spider,” the zoo said in a post on X.
Also known as the great raft spider, the semi-aquatic arachnids have a chocolate-brown body with cream stripes along the side and are able to walk on water. They live in unpolluted fens and marshes.
The first fen raft spider population in the UK was identified in 1956 by the arachnologist Dr Eric Duffey, at the source of the River Waveney in East Anglia.
“Of course, there is also nothing to fear from increased numbers of spiders,” Dave Clarke, who heads up London zoo’s Friendly Spider Programme, wrote in a blog post.
“This is a huge conservation success, both for the spiders and the wider habitat restoration driving the success. And more natural bio-controls out there (even if this species is never coming into human areas) are only a good thing.”
Off the west coast of Greenland, a 17-metre (56ft) aluminium sailing boat creeps through a narrow, rocky fjord in the Arctic twilight. The research team onboard, still bleary-eyed from the rough nine-day passage across the Labrador Sea, lower nets to collect plankton. This is the first time anyone has sequenced the DNA of the tiny marine creatures that live here.
Watching the nets with palpable excitement is Prof Leonid Moroz, a neuroscientist at the University of Florida’s Whitney marine lab. “This is what the world looked like when life began,” he tells his friend, Peter Molnar, the expedition leader with whom he co-founded the Ocean Genome Atlas Project (Ogap).
Moroz gestures toward Greenland’s glaciated valleys. The rapid warming here is replicating conditions from 600m years ago, when complex life forms began appearing. “We’re sailing through deep biological time right now,” he says.
A Sapphirina copepod – tiny crustacea known as sea sapphires. The structural coloration that creates the iridescent sparkle is only seen in males. Photograph: Leonid Moroz/University of Florida
Moroz and Molnar’s mission is to classify, observe, sequence and map 80% of the sea’s smallest creatures to learn more about ourselves, and the health of the planet.
Plankton and humans do not have much in common at first glance. But studying marine organisms has led to breakthrough understandings about our own brains and bodies. Observing the electrical discharges of jellyfish taught us how to restart the heart. Sea slugs showed us how memories form. Squid taught us how signals spread between different parts of the brain. Horseshoe crabs demonstrated how visual receptors work.
An unusual aspect of Moroz and Molnar’s research trips is that they are unlocking plankton’s secrets onboardsailing boats rather than engine–powered vessels – and they are not alone in this endeavour.
“Large oceanographic vessels can cost $100,000 [£77,000] a day, which can quickly bankrupt your research organisation,” says Chris Bowler, an oceanographer with France’s National Centre for Scientific Research and a scientific adviser to the Tara Ocean Foundation.
For the past two years he has collected plankton samples for the Microbiomes Mission, a research initiative to study micro-organisms in the ocean, onboard a 33-metre schooner. “Working from a sailboat is 50 times cheaper,” Bowler says.
That cost saving also allows researchers the luxury of time, which is imperative for finding the genetic commonalities and patterns that will reveal answers about human health. Bowler says it is important to analyse and observe these microscopic organisms interacting with each other and the world around them. That cannot happen in a lab back on land because the organisms are too fragile.
Low-carbon, readily available and easier to manoeuvre near to shore, sailing boats also “don’t vibrate, so you can do really precise work aboard”, says Molnar, who has captained Ogap voyages over more than 9,000 nautical miles.
Clockwise from top left: a new ctenophore species; a swimming crinoid known as a sea lily; the Beroe ovata ctenophore, with another comb jelly (Biolinopsis) in its stomach; Limacina helicina, a swimming snail known as a sea devil; a jellyfish-like hydrozoan (Aglantha digitale); and a Pacific sea gooseberry (Pleurobrachia bachei). Photograph: Leonid Moroz/University of Florida
The reason that microscopic marine life can teach us about our own development is convergent evolution. This is when unrelated organisms arrive at the same solution to a problem, such as how birds, beetles, butterflies and bats all adapted to fly, but did so at different times and in slightly different ways. Overlapping solutions provide common building blocks for everything from how to fold a protein to how to form a brain.
“Every organism that lives here today is a logbook of every single adaptation that made it successful,” Moroz says. “The brain is one of the most complicated structures in the universe. Yet 70% of our knowledge about how the brain works is thanks to marine creatures. Without them, many of today’s medicines would simply not exist.”
The reason he studies plankton is because their “logbook” is the longest – some single-celled marine organisms have been around for more than 3bn years. That means they have more tricks up their metaphorical sleeves than we do.
“Some groups of these marine species do not age, never develop cancers and they can fully regenerate when damaged. They are able to perform many tasks better than us,” Moroz says.
One way to take human medicine to the next level is to take our cues from these organisms. But first, we have to identify them. Ogap’s lofty mission would not have been possible 10 years ago; rapid technological advances have reduced the size of equipment, while satellite communications and AI have shrunk the timeframe for analysing results from months to minutes.
Leonid Moroz, Peter Molnar and others from the Ocean Genome Atlas Project studying plankton in the Gulf of Maine – including sea angels eating sea devils. Video: David Conover/Compass Light
In Greenland, for example, Ogap kept marine organisms alive for several days on their sailing boat while sequencing their DNA during different stages of life. “We were able to watch them reproduce, decay, then repair themselves, even die, all while taking high-resolution video,” Molnar says.
The team then uploaded the data via Starlink to universities where scientists used AI to look for pattern recognition in the organisms’ DNA. “Literally within an hour, we would have results back on the sailboat,” Molnar says. “This type of work was simply science fiction 10 years ago.”
While the technology is new, using sailing boats to explore is a millennia-old human endeavour.
An unidentified siphonophore species (an order related to hydrozoan jellies), photographed off California’s Channel Islands. Photograph: Leonid Moroz/University of Florida
“There’s a long history of sailing to answer scientific questions,” says David Conover, the owner of ArcticEarth, the sailing boat Ogap used for its Greenland expedition. From Captain Cook’s anthropological discoveries in the Pacific to Darwin’s groundbreaking observations on natural selection onboard the Beagle, sailing boats have afforded many types of researchers the luxury of getting to far-flung parts of the world to deeply engage with their surroundings.
“The more time you can afford to be at sea, the more open you are to discovery,” Conover says.
The key now is to observe the cornucopia of unknown marine organisms before they disappear for ever. “By the time you finish your coffee tomorrow morning, between 20 and 100 species will have vanished for ever, including the wonderful solutions they were offered by nature, which is a huge loss for biomedical science,” Moroz says.
To continue documenting the wonders of tiny single-celled sea creatures, Ogap will head next to Patagonia, at the tip of South America. Eventually, Ogap’s genomic atlas will be digitised and made freely available, providing a baseline of marine biodiversity as well as valuable insights for the development of new medicines.
“Every day is a surprise,” Moroz says. “That is the finest part of all of these voyages – the level of excitement, of discovery. It’s so rich. It’s nonstop.”
Plans to build what would be the biggest onshore windfarm in England will move forward this week, the first since the Labour government lifted the de facto ban put in place by the Conservatives nine years ago.
An independent renewable energy developer has submitted plans to erect 21 wind turbines next to an existing windfarm near Greater Manchester.
While other onshore sites in England have more turbines, those at the proposed windfarm at Scout Moor would be more powerful because of technological advances that would enable more than 100 megawatts to be generated there.
That is enough electricity to power the equivalent of 100,000 homes and meet more than 10% of Greater Manchester’s domestic energy needs before the end of the decade.
This would help to meet the government’s target of doubling Britain’s onshore wind power capacity by 2030. That target alongside goals to triple its solar power capacity and quadruple its offshore wind capacity are part of a plan to create a zero-carbon electricity system in the 2030s.
The developer, Cubico Sustainable Investments, will set out its plans to build the new project alongside its proposal for a multimillion-pound community wealth fund to support local people.
If approved, the site would also be the fifth biggest onshore wind power producer in the UK, with the others all in Scotland, topped by the 539MW generated by the 215 turbines at Whitelee, south of Glasgow.
Plans for the Scout Moor site were shelved 10 years ago after a backlash against onshore windfarms in England prompted the then Tory government to put in place planning rules that in effect ruled out new developments.
David Swindin, the Cubico chief executive, said his team had been developing new projects “for about four years in anticipation of the rules changing” to allow further onshore windfarms to be built in England.
Cubico is one of the world’s largest privately owned renewables developers. It is one of many windfarm developers hoping to erect onshore turbines in England for the first time in almost a decade. Labour lifted the Tories’ de facto ban within 72 hours of coming into power in July.
Swindon said: “It was obvious that there was going to be pressure to change the rules, even for the Conservatives. And for some time it seemed likely that Labour would come to power. So we have been eagerly waiting for the moment that we can press the button.”
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Peter Rowe, the project’s development manager, said the site was “one of the most ideal locations for a windfarm” in England thanks to its high wind speeds and close proximity to energy consumers in Greater Manchester. The location rules out the need for expensive grid upgrades to carry the electricity long-distances.
“Clearly we will be going into a public consultation [with the local community] very sensitively. The site itself has been used in the past for mining and quarrying, and the area has been at the heart of Britain’s industrial story. So what we’re putting forward is a modern reinterpretation of how the moors and uplands have been used historically,” he said.
James Robottom, the head of policy at Renewable UK, a trade association, said that since the government lifted the block on onshore windfarms in England, ambitious plans were beginning to come forward “with a strong emphasis on the new investment, jobs and benefit funds which they would bring to local communities”.
“Close consultation with these communities is a key element of every proposal, ensuring that local people have a strong voice in the planning process,” he added.
A government spokesperson said: “While we can’t comment on this specific case, onshore wind is crucial to making Britain a clean energy superpower, boosting the UK’s energy independence and protecting bill payers.”
