Alexandre Lacazette was sent off as Arsenal were beaten by BATE Borisov in the first leg of their round of 32 Europa League match in Belarus. In a competition that Unai Emery is desperate to win for the dual prize of a trophy and the ticket back into the Champions League, a tournament in which he has a personal history of triumph - "Arsenal suffered a chastening evening with no redeeming features".In the night's other fixtures; Celtic left themselves with a mountain to climb after a 2-0 defeat to Valencia at Parkhead, while Chelsea were 2-1 winners over Malmö FF thanks to goals from Ross Barkley and Olivier Giroud in Sweden. The new League of Ireland season gets underway tonight, and Emmet Malone has a team by team guide prepared with all you need to know about each club ahead of the big kick-off.
Iain Henderson will start in the second row as Ulster seek to put behind them the disappointment of a draw against Benetton last time out against Ospreys tonight in Brewery Field. His impressive recuperative powers remain undimmed as his return to fitness is a significant fillip for Ireland coach Joe Schmidt ahead of the Six Nations match against Italy in Rome on Sunday week. Also in Pro14 action tonight, Munster host the Souther Kings - Johann van Graan has been able to call upon a portion of his Irish squad contingent as Chris Farrell, Niall Scannell, John Ryan and Billy Holland were released to the province. A fit again Andrew Conway also takes his place on the right wing.
A review of the GAA's fixtures scheduling is currently under way in Croke Park and is believed to favour the option of playing the All-Ireland club finals in January rather than a calendar-year conclusion to the championships, which would see them played before Christmas.
Meanwhile only half the field made it to the tee at the weather-hit Genesis Open in Los Angeles, with American Jordan Spieth and South Korean Sung Kang sharing the lead. Ireland's Rory McIlroy and Seamus Power, and Tiger Woods were among several players yet to even start their opening round.
