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Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has told Tottenham that qualifying for the Champions League is far tougher than it was before. Villa host Spurs on Saturday with the two sides still in the hunt for European football next season, but with hopes of claiming a top-four Premier League place all but over for both. Tottenham – Champions League finalists in 2019 who reached the round of 16 this season – are sixth, six points behind fourth-placed Manchester United having played a game more. Eighth-placed Villa’s late bid to break into the top four was ended by successive 1-0 away defeats to United and Wolves over the last fortnight. “Their expectation in the beginning was to be in the top four,” ex-Arsenal boss Emery said of his former North London neighbours. “It’s now more difficult than it was five to 10 years ago. There are now seven teams trying to be in the top four. “Maybe Aston Villa now as well. It’s more difficult.” Tottenham’s search for a first trophy since League Cup success in 2008 has seen them turn to Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte since Mauricio Pochettino’s departure in November 2019. Neither Mourinho nor Conte, both perennial winners, could sprinkle their stardust on Spurs and caretaker boss Ryan Mason now has the task of trying to secure European football next season. Mason’s three matches in charge so far have produced a win, a draw and a defeat, with the latest game being a 1-0 home victory over Crystal Palace. Emery said: “Tottenham have had some problems in the last month but they have very good players. “The last match they played against Palace they kept good balance tactically and they have very powerful players in the transition, being strong defensively. “They have very good players who can make different tactical decisions. “The last matches against them at home here, (Villa) have struggled and it’s now a challenge to get a good performance at home. “We have to believe in our players, in our tactical way we are progressing. That is the match on Saturday. “To play a great match, spirit and playing and trying to get at them. They have a three-goal difference with us but our mind is to be very competitive and to get better.” Villa quartet Boubacar Kamara, Leon Bailey, Matty Cash and Philippe Coutinho are all available. “It’s the first time in the last month we have everybody ready to be in the squad for Saturday,” Emery said. “Only Jed Steer is out but Cash, Kamara, Bailey, Coutinho – in the last match they were in the squad but not ready 100 per cent to play. “Some players are still not ready to play 90 minutes, but they’re ready to be in the squad and ready to play.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Steve Cooper not interested in Chelsea’s problems ahead of Forest’s trip Josh Cobb shocked to be replaced by David Willey as Northamptonshire T20 captain Wrexham’s Phil Parkinson named National League manager of the season

YouTube star KSI returns to the ring on Saturday, fighting boxer and businessman Joe Fournier at the O2 Arena. KSI (real name Olajide Olatunji) has taken on Logan Paul twice in the past and most recently fought gamer FaZe Temperrr, winning via knockout in January. His rematch with Paul – a win that followed their initial draw – is the only professional bout of his career, with the rest having been exhibitions. Meanwhile, fellow Briton Fournier has a 9-0 professional record and lost an exhibition bout with former world champion David Haye on points in 2021. The 40-year-old got his start in the fitness industry before moving into nightclub business. KSI, 29, is facing his most credible opponent by far this weekend, in another exhibition fight, but who’s next for the YouTuber? Here’s all you need to know. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. When is KSI vs Fournier? The event will take place on Saturday 13 May at the O2 Arena in London. The main card is scheduled to begin at 7.15pm BST (11.15am PT, 1.15pm CT, 2.15pm ET), with the main event due at approximately 9.40pm BST (1.40pm PT, 3.40pm CT, 4.40pm ET). How can I watch it? The event will be available on Dazn pay-per-view, priced at £19 for existing subscribers. New customers can purchase the event for £19, too, while receiving one month’s access to the streaming platform. How much are the fighters earning? No earnings for this fight have been disclosed, but KSI is said by Draft Kings to have made around $1million last August when he beat Swarmz and Luis Alcaraz Pineda on the same night. He looks likely to earn a similar amount for his fight with Fournier, whose purse – based on those of KSI’s recent opponents – could be around $400,000. Full card (subject to change) KSI vs Joe Fournier Deji vs Swarmz Salt Papi vs Anthony Taylor Tennessee Thresh vs Paigey Cakey Viruzz vs DK Money Little Bellsy vs Lil Kymchii Who is KSI fighting next? KSI’s next fight is not yet scheduled, but for some time he has been exchanging words with Jake Paul in hopes of arranging a bout. KSI fought Logan Paul, Jake’s older brother, to a draw in an amateur fight in 2018, before outpointing the American in a professional rematch a year later. Logan Paul went on to fight boxing legend Floyd Mayweather in an exhibition contest in 2021, while Jake has been much more active – going 6-1 as a pro after stopping KSI’s brother Deji in his amateur debut in 2018. Last time out, in February, 26-year-old Paul suffered his first loss, a points defeat by Tommy Fury. The YouTube star is now set to box ex-UFC fighter Nate Diaz in August. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Jake Paul threatens to ‘fire’ employee for bothering Nate Diaz at press conference Conor McGregor shoves Michael Chandler in trailer for The Ultimate Fighter Mark Zuckerberg wins first jiu-jitsu tournament, takes home multiple medals When is the KSI vs Fournier fight? Start time, undercard and more KSI, from ‘endearing’ class clown to YouTuber who has changed the face of boxing How to watch KSI vs Fournier online and on TV this weekend

Steve Cooper says Nottingham Forest’s assignment at Chelsea on Saturday is not made any easier by the London club’s recent struggles. Forest head to Stamford Bridge looking for the three points that could virtually secure their Premier League status and will fancy their chances, despite their dreadful away record. Chelsea ended a nine-game winless run at Bournemouth last week, but they have not won any of their last five league home matches. Cooper says he does not take any notice of the problems Frank Lampard is enduring. “We are playing Chelsea away so that is always going to be a tough game at any time of the season, you look at the squad they have, the changes they can make, the team they can start with, they have players all over the pitch who can make a difference and we have to be ready for that,” he said. “I never pay any attention to any context around a team we play against apart from them being at their best because I always think you have to prepare for that. “That’s what we’ll be doing. We want to go there with our best intentions of getting a result we really need and want. “We have got to know what it takes from our guys to do well and try and minimise the strengths they have because there is a lot.” Forest will give Serge Aurier every chance to be fit after he limped off in Monday night’s win over Southampton with a knock. “Serge walked off and we’re doing everything we can to see if he’s available,” he said. “Maybe in a different time of the season and if Neco (Williams) was fit it might be a different situation, but we are going to give him everything we have to be available. But that might be touch and go. “(Gustavo) Scarpa is back in full training now so he won’t be far off being available. (Emmanuel) Dennis has been injured, he picked up a knock in training before Southampton and he is still not available. “Still a bit of a mixed bag, it’s definitely been worse but not something we’re paying attention to.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Josh Cobb shocked to be replaced by David Willey as Northamptonshire T20 captain Wrexham’s Phil Parkinson named National League manager of the season It was an amazing honour – Chelsea star Sam Kerr proud of role in coronation

Sunderland is within reach of a return to the Premier League after a chaotic and often farcical six years during which the club has been the subject of a Netflix documentary

Julen Lopetegui insists Wolves need to spend to avoid another relegation dogfight. The former Real Madrid manager has guided Wolves to safety with three games left, despite being bottom of the table at Christmas. He is due to meet chairman Jeff Shi before the end of the season to thrash out the club’s plans for the summer and beyond now their Premier League status is assured. Those talks will include discussions over his transfer kitty at Molineux after a season of struggle. “We have to be together in the same way, we want to improve. In football you have to want to increase your performance and squad. This is about investment too,” said Lopetegui ahead of Saturday’s trip to Manchester United. “I am going to have a long meeting with our chairman to hear him and hear what his ideas are for next year. This is going to be key for me. “That’s why I have to hear him and know first hand what his ideas are. After I will have more information to take a decision. “We have to improve and have to take advantage of the summer. If not we know the level of the Premier League; the first step is to hear him. “Afterwards we will take our decision about a lot of players. In the right moment I’m going to talk, first with the club and afterwards with the players about what is going to be our idea. “We want to improve, we need to improve. We have had a very hard year. We have to be ready to improve and be able to compete better in the next year. “We have to be ready. This year has been a very hard year for all, maybe it can serve as a lesson for all of us.” Lopetegui has no new injury worries for the trip to Old Trafford with Wolves 13th and 10 points clear of the drop zone. “United are a very good team, with top players, a good coach with a very clear idea in the way they want to play,” he added. “They are fighting to be in a good position to be in next season’s Champions League. This is a very difficult achievement.” Read More Football rumours: Newcastle revive interest in signing James Maddison Dwight McNeil says ‘nothing is done yet’ despite Everton’s huge win at Brighton On This Day in 2006: Theo Walcott lands shock England World Cup call-up Roberto De Zerbi believes Brighton deserve a European place Ruben Neves: It would need a catastrophe for Wolves to go down now Julen Lopetegui: Survival for Wolves will be my biggest achievement

The president of the Russian Olympic Committee has indicated that the country could boycott qualifying competitions in fencing for next year's Paris Games after some athletes were barred from competing

The Philadelphia Flyers have named long-time television analyst Keith Jones team president of hockey operations and have removed the interim tag from general manager Danny Briere’s title

A new report says there was a "sharp increase" in violence at abortion clinics in 2022, the year when Roe v. Wade was overturned, ending the federal right to an abortion. A disproportionate increase occurred in states that protect abortion rights, according to the National Abortion Federation, a professional association for abortion providers.

Before KSI, there was Olajide Olatunji – “JJ” for short. Before the YouTuber, gamer, rapper, boxer, promoter and energy drink magnate, there was the affable class clown in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire. “I remember we did a production of Sweeney Todd,” one of his schoolmates tells The Independent. “He played the judge, and when he died at the end, he was twitching and doing the worm across the stage. Everyone was in stitches. He was funny, a nice guy – everybody liked him for that. He was popular, but not like, ‘I’m the s***’; he was confident but also a nerdy, endearing, sweet guy.” With those qualities, JJ was tailor made for YouTube, where he launched his channel ‘KSIOlajideBT’ in 2009 – four years after the platform’s inception. Fifteen years old at the time, JJ quickly garnered a following by filming himself playing Fifa – the famous football video game – at his parents’ house in Watford. His bewitching cackle was a key feature in each upload. “He always had that very distinctive laugh,” his schoolmate recalls. “I remember that. He would laugh at something during morning registration, and the teachers would be like, ‘JJ, please!’” By the end of 2009, Olatunji had amassed 1,000 subscribers. That number had tripled by the end of 2010, and Olatunji’s growth accelerated at a startling pace in 2011, as he reached 150,000 subscribers, and in 2012, when he crossed the million mark. JJ had become KSI – standing for ‘Knowledge Strength Integrity’ – and he would soon become arguably the most famous YouTuber in Britain. “When he started getting big on YouTube, it wasn’t a surprise to anyone,” this schoolmate says, “but you’d hear from certain people that knew him: ‘Oh, he’s definitely got a bit of an ego now. He’s not as sweet anymore, there’s an arrogance there, he talks about himself a lot. He used to be more engaged when he would talk to people.’” If the YouTube venture “made sense” to his peers, then so did his next move, when he released his first rap song in 2015. “I remember he’d written a rap to learn every element on the periodic table, and all the teachers were so impressed,” his schoolmate adds, but it was singing about supercars, after dropping out of school, that demonstrated how drastically KSI’s life had changed. His debut single “Lamborghini”, featuring P Money, peaked at No 30 in the UK chart. It has since been followed by numerous EPs and two studio albums. KSI’s next endeavour was less predictable, however. KSI ushers in the era of ‘influencer boxing’ “He was so sweet that no one would’ve said, ‘Oh, he’s gonna fight when he’s older,’” says his schoolmate. “When he did, it was like: ‘Oh, jeez. Well, I guess he can, so who’s gonna stop him?’” Popularity is not the synonym for likeability that some think it is, and KSI has long had his detractors. Wisely, however, he began to weaponise a widespread desire to watch him get punched in the face. In 2018, KSI fought in his first amateur boxing match, beating fellow British YouTuber Joe Weller via TKO inside three rounds, following a build-up that saw KSI mock his opponent for opening up on experiences with depression. KSI later apologised for his comments. Next for the Briton was Logan Paul, who in some ways appeared to be his American equivalent, and the pair fought to a draw in a sold-out Manchester Arena. The fight did a reported 1.3 million pay-per-view buys, leading to a professional rematch in 2019 – held at Los Angeles’ famed Staples Center, streamed on Dazn, promoted by Eddie Hearn, and won by KSI on points. Fighting on the undercard were world champions Billy Joe Saunders and Devin Haney, the latter of whom defends his undisputed lightweight titles against Vasily Lomachenko this month. The dynamic was disconcerting for most boxing fans, who accused the YouTubers of making a mockery of the sport, yet pop star Justin Bieber was present as the likes of Haney and Saunders were exposed to an entirely new audience – one that they would have otherwise never reached. Hearn, the most recognisable promoter in boxing, recognised that. Alongside Paul and the American’s younger brother Jake, KSI had ushered in the era of ‘influencer boxing’. KSI flourishes as new-age entrepreneur KSI, for his part, has mastered the art of self-promotion, but he is now trying to turn that outwards, too. Now 29, with more than 30 million subscribers, seven billion views and a reported net worth of over $25m, KSI returned to boxing in August. At London’s O2 Arena, he stopped rapper Swarmz and pro boxer (in loose terms) Luis Alcaraz Pineda on the same night. Notably, the event was the first staged by Misfits Boxing – a promotion created by KSI in partnership with the established Wasserman Promotions and streaming platform Dazn. Another more unlikely partnership followed, as the mutually antagonistic KSI and Logan Paul launched the energy drink Prime together. For reasons that – beyond the international awareness of the YouTubers – are difficult to discern, the drink flooded through the nation and off shelves, selling out in many stores and ultimately being banned in some schools in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and South Africa. It has, however, attracted sponsorship deals with Arsenal FC, the UFC and WWE, with KSI appearing alongside Paul at this year’s WrestleMania. Trying the drink on Heart radio, Gordon Ramsay said: “Oh, Jesus. It’s like swallowing perfume. What would I give it out of 10? A zero.” KSI came under starker criticism just last month for his use of a racial slur in a YouTube video, which led the 29-year-old to apologise and visit a Mosque in Bradford – an effort to educate himself on the matter. “There’s no excuse, no matter the circumstances,” he wrote on Twitter. “I shouldn’t have said it and I’m sorry. I’ve always said to my audience that they shouldn’t worship me or put me on a pedestal, because I’m human. I’m not perfect, I’m gonna mess up in life, and lately I’ve been messing up a lot.” Fighting into the future Fans will hope that KSI’s preparations for his next fight will keep him out of such trouble, though his progress has been gradual. His form is lacking, but his power is impressive. This weekend, he will test his attributes against Joe Fournier. The 40-year-old, a former pro boxer with a 9-0 record and an exhibition defeat by David Haye in 2021, got his start in the fitness industry before moving into the nightclub business. Perhaps those are areas for KSI to conquer one day; it would not be a surprise. For now, however, his boxing endeavour takes priority and takes him back to the O2 Arena. JJ had his school in stitches during a rendition of Sweeney Todd; KSI will hope to have Fournier’s head in stitches come Saturday night. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More KSI vs Fournier live stream: How to watch fight online and on TV this weekend Mark Zuckerberg wins first jiu-jitsu tournament, takes home multiple medals Why is BT Sport being rebranded to TNT Sports? Eurosport merger explained When is the KSI vs Fournier fight? Start time, undercard and more How to watch KSI vs Fournier online and on TV this weekend What is an exhibition fight and how is it different to a professional bout?

Rafael Leão summed up AC Milan’s mood pretty succinctly

Barcelona is on the cusp of winning its first Spanish league title since the traumatic departure of Lionel Messi