The state of the Premier League is making everyone lose their minds
“Football makes people mad,” Sepp Blatter once said, and that never seems truer than when the football doesn’t mean that much. Welcome to the Premier League’s post-table period, where everything seems to have been turned on its head and you wouldn’t necessarily guess where teams are from their feelings.
There are some parallels with the post-truth era in politics in terms of perceptions, albeit with the significant caveat that very little of it actually matters.
That is the entire point. There is so little to play for, and yet that very vacuum has seemed to make so many people around football more histrionically animated than if everything was going to the wire. The latter might at least have provided some focus. The last weekend’s matches were a vintage set of post-table fixtures: on the beach but in the wars. There was so much that didn’t seem to make sense.
Most conspicuously, there are Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, directly above the relegation zone in 16th and 17th, respectively. That’s despite their positions on the Deloitte Football Money League as the fourth and ninth wealthiest clubs in the world, as they stand on the brink of a Champions League return through Europa League final glory.
One of Ruben Amorim or Ange Postecoglou could lift a historic trophy, but there they were openly discussing their own futures in such an agitated manner.
Most visibly, there was a white t-shirted Evangelos Marinakis publicly berating the manager who has taken his Nottingham Forest from 17th to seventh.
This was despite the shipping magnate temporarily placing Forest in a “blind trust”, due to his simultaneous ownership of both Olympiakos and Rio Ave and Uefa’s rules on that, as a consequence of the Nottingham club’s celebrated return to European football.
Documents at Companies House show Marinakis has ceased to be a “person with significant control” at the club. He didn’t display too much control of emotion after the 2-2 draw with Leicester City, anyway.
Most emotionally, you wouldn’t have thought Liverpool were celebrating a Premier League title, given the conflicted atmosphere that developed once parts of the club started booing Trent Alexander-Arnold. Two weeks of jubilation instead evolved into what looked like an angry club culture war.
Even after that 2-2 draw, Mikel Arteta chose a spirited Arsenal comeback as the moment to berate his players for performance. That was only surprising in the context of the last two weeks, and comments he has made in opposite situations that have raised eyebrows.
And that is one thing that should be stressed with all of these contrasts. There are complicated contexts, that shouldn’t be overlooked.
Take the Liverpool case first, since that is what even Jamie Carragher said would now dominate headlines. It has.
The line that has developed throughout this controversy is that no one should tell the club’s supporters how to feel, and that’s perfectly fair. There are highly intimate local elements to this that only does close to it would truly understand.
Except, you now have Liverpool’s own match-going fans telling each other how to feel. Some who attended Anfield on Sunday have talked about arguments between supporters and a divisive atmosphere. One radio show featured a local in tears about the response.
It should similarly be stressed that there’s a significant difference between telling fans how to feel and outsiders understandably commenting on that reaction. It’s a big story, at one of the biggest clubs in the world.
These are the champions, a status that supporters have waited 35 years to properly celebrate. That memory will now, at least in part, involve this internal debate. What feels remarkable from the outside – and it should very much be emphasised this is the outside – is how a title celebration has led to this.
Except, we all know this wouldn’t have happened if the title was actually on the line. This is a direct product of the vacuum, but also the media-industrial complex around football. There’s not much to really move people on the pitch, but the business can’t stop. The afterglow of a title that would normally remain so warming can’t last that long when the furnace demands more. Even Alexander-Arnold’s announcement had to become “an event”. To think that there was a moment when he seemed to want to deride the noise around his future by putting his hand to his ear. He’s heard it now.
So has Nuno Espirito, albeit directly in his face. Forest do still have something to play for given that they’re going for the Champions League but, in normal circumstances, this would be a bonus ambition amid a great season.
Sure, it’s disappointing that they might miss out on qualification having in January been considered as potential title challengers. Any rational analysis would conclude the team has massively overachieved, and that’s even in the context of Forest’s wage bill shooting up after a points deduction for a breach of financial rules last season.
And yet there was Marinakis, publicly berating his manager in scenes that are unprecedented even in the Premier League.
This is what football has become.
Even the absurdity of the Spurs and United seasons comes from the business of the game, and how financial incentives have ensured a Uefa rule where the Europa League also brings Champions League qualification. A trophy on its own apparently isn’t enough any more, so both clubs have essentially played as if their top-seven wage bills aren’t enough to fully compete on two fronts.
An increasingly resonant line, relayed in this writer’s book ‘States of Play’, was what a senior NFL figure told the Premier League’s founding executives when they were on a fact-finding missions.
“If you think you’ve got problems now, wait until you have money.”
Now, a season can’t just play out. The machine around it all has generated more chaos than we would have anticipated. Even the most measured business people are driven to irrationality in football. Look at some of the decisions that both Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Daniel Levy have made.
And yet that is also where two sides of this meet.
One of the most fascinating aspects of the Alexander-Arnold story has been mild criticism for Arne Slot for bringing the right-back on, and contributing to the conflicted atmosphere. This is essentially asking an ultra-professional title-winning manager not play one of his best players when he’s trying to win a match against next season’s likely title rivals, because of the need to emotionally manage the crowd.
By the same token, many Liverpool fans have been asked to put themselves in Alexander-Arnold’s situation, and think about their own careers.
Except, of course a fan obviously isn’t going to think like a modern-day player. If they did, the professionals wouldn’t earn anywhere near as much as they do, and some of these controversies wouldn’t even arise.
It is precisely these pure emotions that the business of the sport successfully seeks to capitalise; “the commodification of feelings” as sports lawyer and former Everton player Gareth Farrelly put it.
As befits the weekend, there is curiously some good and bad to this. Or, maybe more relevantly, there are occasionally moments when good seems bad and bad seems good.
Emotion and fan irrationality are what drives sport. Capitalising all of that are what erodes it. This is never clearer than in this post-table period, and trying to make sense of a bizarre weekend.
India denies targeting Pakistan’s alleged nuclear sites
India denied targeting Pakistan’s alleged nuclear installations as the federal territory of Jammu and Kashmir observed the first peaceful night in days following a temporary truce between the two nations after days of military escalations.
The night remained mostly peaceful in Jammu and Kashmir and other areas along the international border, the Indian Army said, adding there were no reported incidents of military action on the “first calm night in recent days”.
The military operations chiefs of both India and Pakistan will resume talks on Monday on the next steps to ensure peace between the two nuclear-armed rivals.
Air Marshal Awadhesh Kumar Bharti said India went over 150km inside Pakistan to strike Muilir Cantonment in Karachi city. The Air Force also targeted a radar site in Lahore city and another site close to Gujranwala in Punjab province.
Dismissing speculations, the Air Marshal claimed India did not target Kirana Hills, which allegedly houses some of Pakistan’s nuclear installations. “Thank you for telling us that Kirana Hills houses some nuclear installation, we did not know about it. We have not hit Kirana Hills, whatever is there,” Air Marshal Bharti retorted following a reporter’s question.
“We also reiterated that our fight was with terrorists and their support infrastructure and not with the Pakistan military. However, it is a pity that the Pakistan military chose to intervene and bat for the terrorists, which compelled us to respond in kind,” he added.
US president Donald Trump over the weekend pledged to find a solution to the long-running Kashmir dispute after the South Asian nations reached a ceasefire on Saturday afternoon, for which he took credit.
The truce announced on Saturday followed four days of intense fighting between the neighbours in one of the largest military escalations in nearly three decades, killing almost 70 people.
The Indian military on Monday released videos to claim it shot down a Pakistani Mirage fighter jet and damaged military bases during its “Operation Sindoor”. India launched airstrikes on Pakistani soil to avenge the killing of 26 people in the Pahalgam valley of India-administered Kashmir in one of the worst attacks on tourists in decades.
India‘s military has claimed the strikes into Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir last week killed more than 100 militants, including prominent leaders.
Both India and Pakistan claimed to have downed each other’s jets in a dog-fight that reportedly involved around 125 jets – the largest aerial combat since World War Two.
Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, the director general of military operations, on Sunday said India’s Armed Forces struck nine militant infrastructure and training facilities, including sites of the Lashkar-e-Taiba group that India blames for carrying out major militant strikes in India and the disputed region of Kashmir.
“We achieved total surprise,” Lt Gen Ghai told reporters in New Delhi, adding Pakistan’s response was “erratic and rattled”.
India accused Pakistan of backing the militants who carried out the massacre, a charge Islamabad denied. The incident first led to a spat of tit-for-tat diplomatic measures by both the nations, sending their bilateral ties to a near-historic low.
The two expelled each other’s diplomats, shut their airspace, land borders, and suspended a crucial water treaty.
After Wednesday’s strikes in Pakistan, both sides exchanged heavy fires along their de facto border in the restive Kashmir region followed by missile and drone strikes into each other’s territories, mainly targeting military installations and airbases. Dozens of civilians were killed on both the sides in heavy shelling, the two countries said.
The Indian Army claimed 35-40 personnel of the Pakistan Armed Forces had been killed at the Line of Control, the de facto border that divides the Kashmir region.
Air Marshal Bharti earlier said India “definitely we have downed a few planes”, without revealing the actual number or offering evidence. “There are loses from their sides which we have inflicted,” he said.
He refused to comment on Pakistani claims of shooting down five Indian fighter jets, including a French-made Rafale, but said “we are in a combat scenario and losses are a part of combat”.
Pakistan’s military on Sunday told reporters it did not ask for a ceasefire, as claimed by India, but rather it was India that had sought the ceasefire.
Lt Gen Ahmad Sharif said Pakistan’s armed forces targeted a total of 26 Indian military installations in response to India’s missile strikes which were launched before dawn Wednesday.
He said the military had vowed it would respond to the Indian aggression, and it has fulfilled its commitment to the nation. Lt Gen Sharif warned that any threat to Pakistan’s sovereignty or territorial integrity would be met with a “comprehensive, retributive, and decisive” response.
He claimed Pakistan exercised “maximum restraint” during the counterstrike, employing medium-range missiles and other munitions, and that no civilian areas were targeted inside India.
Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar last week alleged his country’s armed forces had killed 40 to 50 Indian soldiers along the Line of Control.
People on both sides of the border reported heavy exchanges of fire between Indian and Pakistani troops, which subsided by Sunday morning.
In the Poonch area of Indian-administered Kashmir, people said the intense shelling from the past few days had traumatised them. “Most people ran as shells were being fired,” said college student Sosan Zehra, who returned home Sunday. “It was completely chaotic”.
As part of the ceasefire, both nations agreed to immediately stop all military action on land, in the air and at sea. Pakistan has thanked the US, and especially President Trump, several times for facilitating the ceasefire.
The Indian military sent a “hotline message” to Pakistan with complaints of violations of the ceasefire, which Pakistan denied flouting.
India has not said anything about Mr Trump or the US since the deal was announced. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting on Sunday with top government and military officials.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio said he spoke with British foreign secretary David Lammy and discussed the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan, and called for both countries to maintain the ceasefire and to continue to communicate. Mr Rubio said the US supported direct dialogue between India and Pakistan and encouraged continued efforts to improve communications.
Warning issued for thunderstorms across large parts of the UK
A yellow weather warning has been issued for thunderstorms in parts of England and Wales.
The Met Office has said the scattered storms across areas including Wales, the West Country, the Midlands and London could lead to disruption and some flooding.
More than half a month’s worth of rain could hit some areas during the warning period, from midday on Monday until 10pm.
On Sunday afternoon showers started to hit the Reading and Bristol areas, before the further thunderstorms will develop on Monday, Met Office meteorologist Becky Mitchell said.
It comes after much of the rest of the country had seen a hot and sunny weekend.
Ms Mitchell said: “It’s another hot and humid day across the southern areas and that’s going to trigger thundery showers.
“On Monday between 20mm and 30mm of rain could fall in an hour and between 40mm and 50mm in the space of one to two hours. There’s the possibility of flooding and disruption, that’s just going to depend on those heavy showers lingering.”
Hail and localised power cuts are also a possibility within the warning area, she said.
Northern Ireland could see some potentially heavy rain on Sunday night and the north west of England and southern Scotland could see scattered showers on Monday afternoon, but the same level of impact as the warning zone is not expected.
From Tuesday onwards, the weather is forecast to turn more settled, with highs of low to mid 20s, which could mean Northern Ireland and Scotland see their hottest days of the year so far, Ms Mitchell said.
On Sunday, a 42-year-old man’s body was recovered on Sunday following searches for a swimmer who went missing in Loch Ard on Saturday, Police Scotland said.
A search was launched after the swimmer was reported missing from the loch, which is in the Trossachs National Park, at 9pm on Saturday.
Police Scotland’s diving and marine unit were involved, along with a mountain rescue team and an air support unit. There are not thought to be any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.
These are the biggest regrets my patients have at the end of life
I am extremely passionate about palliative care; and helping people towards a “good death” – one that’s peaceful and dignified. But it’s important to understand that palliative care isn’t only about death itself. Much of my work is with those who are dying, and over the past six years, they have taught me invaluable lessons about life and what truly matters. I work with people of all ages, from 18 onwards, with a variety of diseases including cancer, heart failure, Parkinson’s, and motor neurone disease. But while conditions, ages and life experiences may be very different, many patients experience similar insights as their life draws to a close.
Most often, I hear sadness about wasted time. People look back and deeply regret not making more time for important things, and not embracing each moment as it happened. We live in a society where everyone is in such a rush and we put so much pressure on ourselves to achieve big things.
At the end of life, people often reflect that it’s so important to take that step back sometimes, and enjoy the smaller and simpler moments – being outside, walking your dog, taking the time to have a chat with a friend. They now absolutely value those times, and as a result, I’ve realised how important it is to be around for your children as they grow up. Don’t miss sports day, or the school play if you can help it. My patients often remind me that time won’t come back.
People who are dying deeply regret dwelling on arguments, too. Those petty disagreements or grudges they have been holding for years seem meaningless. Generally, people long to reconcile at the end of life. I see it so frequently – and those long-lost family members and friends will usually come and visit if they’re asked. Re-evaluating things at the end of life gives you a different perspective on where things have broken down. Patients reflect deeply on past hurts and think “actually I could have managed that differently”, or “why did I say that?” Nobody wants to die with regrets. It’s very moving to see people who have finally reconnected before it’s too late, and it’s always very emotional for those involved.
Interestingly, I have had very little experience of people regretting health decisions they have made that they’ve enjoyed, like drinking or smoking. But I have heard many saying they wish they’d gone to their doctor when they experienced the first symptoms of an illness. They’ll often say, “I wish I’d just checked with the GP”, or “If only I’d gone for that smear test when it was offered”. It’s so easy to put things off.
Patients most often want to talk about their emotional lives. Their marriages, children, families and friends are what really matter towards the end.
It can be really special to hear the whole story of people’s lives, sometimes, things that happened more than 70 years ago, like how they met their beloved husband or wife. They always bring a smile because it’s reminiscing about a happy time. But I also have people saying, “I got divorced – if only I’d married my childhood sweetheart, it would have been different…” We do quite often hear people saying they wish they’d married their first love.
I have never once heard anyone say they wish they’d spent more time in the office or at work. And fortunately, nobody has ever admitted to committing a crime. I’m not sure I’d want to know!
Being a palliative care nurse requires great patience. A lot of situations are quite tricky to navigate, due to heightened emotions and grief, and we also need to have excellent listening skills, as our patients or their families might be telling us stories that they haven’t wanted to speak about before. They’re inviting us into their deepest feelings, which is such an honour.
Sometimes, patients can be very angry, knowing they haven’t long left, and feeling cheated of life milestones like having children, or enjoying the things they had envisaged to do in old age. But in my experience, giving them the time and space to fully explore those emotions and reminding them that it’s OK to be angry or to feel deeply sad or bitterly resentful is vital. That’s when we come together as a team and talk to them and their families, trying to find outlets that can help, whether that’s through time outdoors, music they love, or just someone to listen to without judgment.
It can be hard to separate our feelings from the job sometimes. It’s not like working in an acute hospital where everything is a rush – we make time and space to form a genuine connection. We get to know our patients and their families so well, we almost become part of the family ourselves. It’s very upsetting when the patient I’ve become so close to dies, but I try to focus on the difference I’ve made to that family, and we have a great deal of workplace support.
I now know, too, that end-of-life wishes are worth talking about long before it happens. It’s a running joke in my house that I will always bring it up – but talking about the process of dying is not something to be afraid of. When families haven’t spoken about it, I’ve seen how much of an emotional strain that can be on the relatives who are then left to guess whether their loved one wanted to be buried or cremated, or what their spiritual needs were at the end of their life. Ideally, we will help to facilitate those decisions and advocate for the patient, diffuse difficult situations and come to a compromise.
A peaceful death isn’t dependent on faith. We have had patients of all faiths and none. Some ask us to open the window after they’ve died to release their soul, or they have special rituals they’d like us to follow. We have others who don’t want to talk about what happens next, they don’t want to think about a funeral, and spirituality isn’t on their radar – they’d rather talk about the football. As long as it’s calm and as they want it to be, it’s a good death.
Knowing your loved one has died peacefully can definitely help with the grieving process. Something as simple as us remembering special details at the end can greatly reassure the family that they had what they needed to be comfortable.
What matters most at the end of life is dignity. We always ask on admission, “What matters to you?” Everyone will say something different; someone might want their favourite pyjamas, someone else might need a cup of tea every morning, but the underlying issue for everyone is being recognised as an individual so they don’t become a number – that they remain the whole person they are.
People who have never witnessed a hospice death tend to fear dying as a chaotic, frightening process, the way it’s depicted in TV dramas. I want to reassure them that it can also be dignified and peaceful, in a safe, loving environment. I will always see it as a true privilege if I can be a small part of that.
As told to Flic Everett.
Sue Ryder is here so no one has to face death or grief alone. For more information about its hospice care visit sueryder.org or search ‘Grief Deserves Better’ for free bereavement support
How to make people care about migrant deaths – and to stop them
We don’t know exactly how many people died, but we do know this: last year was the deadliest on record for refugees trying to cross the English Channel.
While the UN estimates that 82 people – including at least 14 children – lost their lives, French frontline charities believe the fatality rate to be significantly higher.
The fact that there is no universally accepted record of deaths at sea means that the true scale of these preventable tragedies remains hidden.
Our Labour government has rightly pledged to reduce deaths in the Channel, but how can we prevent further loss of life when we don’t even know how many lives are being lost?
People are more than statistics, but right now, we don’t even have those.
This is why I’m proposing an amendment to the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, which would create a duty on the Home Office to report quarterly on these deaths.
Such reports would be as regular as those on immigration statistics, because every death in our asylum system must be acknowledged and learned from.
Of course, this amendment must be just one of many steps this government takes to build an asylum and immigration system that is rooted in compassion and humanity, rather than performative cruelty.
If our leaders are serious about preventing future deaths, they must create safe and legal routes for people seeking refuge, so they don’t have to risk their lives just to reach our shores.
We were right to stop the Conservatives’ Rwanda deportation scheme, but we must now go further and do everything possible to avoid more casualties at our borders. That starts with facing the truth of just how many people are dying in the Channel.
Refugees are dying in camps and hotels. They’re dying on our streets after being made homeless. And they’re dying by suicide and from infectious disease.
Freedom of Information requests reveal that 2024 was the deadliest-ever year in asylum accommodation, with 51 people dying while under the care of the Home Office; among them, a 15-year-old boy and two babies. Many of these deaths were attributed to suicide, while others listed unknown causes or even unknown death dates.
Thanks to the tireless efforts of campaigners and journalists, we know some of their names and stories.
There is the teenage victim of modern slavery who took his own life while terrified of deportation. The father of one who died of diphtheria after being held in a government processing centre. The seven-year-old girl who was crushed to death on an overcrowded boat.
But what of those who have slipped through the cracks – who died in silence, unrecorded?
The very least the state owes people who have died seeking protection is for their deaths not to be swept under the rug, and for their humanity to be recognised and remembered. In fact, it’s not even the bare minimum.
These deaths are rising at a terrifying rate: limited data suggests deaths have risen twelvefold since 2019 – far faster than the number of asylum claims. Reports in 2023 showed that the number of people seeking asylum dying by suicide had doubled compared to the years prior to 2020.
And since these statistics only cover people who die whilst physically inside Home Office accommodation, the true numbers are likely to be far higher.
Many of these deaths are preventable, and they are happening because successive Conservative governments created a system that is designed to deter and dehumanise.
Over the past decade, the scapegoating of refugees for the UK’s social and economic problems has become normalised in the media, with bad-faith debates growing increasingly inflamed and politicised.
The human beings at the centre of this have been forgotten amid endless talk of “stopping the boats”. We cannot continue this legacy.
Accurate data is vital if we are to save future lives, but I want to make clear that this small change in the Bill is not intended to reduce people to faceless statistics.
Where it is safe to do so, the public should know the names of those who have died, so that their passing can be properly mourned.
By speaking the names of people who have died in our asylum system in Parliament, I hope we can return some kindness and dignity to our discussion of refugees.
People who flee war and persecution and come to the UK have already overcome unimaginable odds. They have left behind their homes, families and identities in pursuit of something we should all have the right to: safety, a secure home and the freedom to live without fear or persecution.
That these traumatised people are dying so close to the end of their journeys is a tragedy.
We owe it to those who have lost their lives in our asylum system to understand how and why they died. We also owe it to them to act, to stop deaths like these from happening. And that starts with properly recording them.
Celebration villa breaks: find your perfect luxury getaway
If you’re planning a milestone birthday, a big anniversary, or a long-awaited reunion, a villa holiday is hard to beat. Imagine clinking glasses on a rooftop terrace at sunset or gathering loved ones around a candlelit garden table for a leisurely dinner under the night sky.
These special occasions deserve much more than booking out a busy hotel, and nothing beats having your own sun-drenched sanctuary where you have the space and privacy to celebrate in style. Whether you’re heading to Marrakech in the shadow of the Atlas Mountains, to the rolling hills of Tuscany, or a tropical oasis further afield, Villas are the perfect home-away-from-home for celebrating something, or someone, special.
CV Villas’ luxurious ABOVE collection offers the perfect backdrop for unforgettable moments – think breathtaking settings, total privacy, and the kind of comfort and space that makes everyone feel at home. All come with stunning interiors, sweeping views as far as the eye can see, and enviable locations in some of the world’s most sought-after spots. Each villa is hand-picked by dedicated CV Villa specialists, who are experts in helping people craft their dream getaway. Many come with their own infinity pools, breathtaking views and large alfresco dining areas, perfect for spending quality time together during life’s most important moments. Villas aren’t just places to stay, they’re a big part of the celebration itself.
From the moment you book your stay to your arrival back home, the CV Villas Concierge team is there to make everything as seamless and stress-free as possible. They are dedicated to looking after you and your party before and throughout your holiday so that you can focus on the things that really matter, like spending quality time together and celebrating without having to worry about the minor details. The team tailors each trip to exactly what you’re after, whether you’re looking to book a private boat day or need to organise a surprise celebration dinner, nothing is too much trouble. Many of the five-star villas even come with their own butlers and chefs so that you can be waited on hand and foot during your special getaway.
ABOVE villas are the epitome of luxury and come with designer interiors, infinity pools boasting panoramic ocean views, and terraces made for golden hour cocktails – properties with serious star quality. What’s more, they’re located all around the world, from the sun-soaked shores of Spain and Greece to the palm-fringed beaches of far-flung Sri Lanka and beyond.
Sampling delicious local food is a big part of a holiday, but catering for a large group can often mean juggling different requests and palates. Luckily for you, many of these luxury villas come with their very own in-villa chefs – perfect for when you’d rather toast the moment with a glass of fizz than spend time flapping around in the kitchen. Instead, let your chef whip up multi-course meals morning till night, using the freshest local produce, all based on your personal tastes and dietary requirements, before tucking into it alfresco under the undisturbed starry night sky.
The little luxuries make a big difference to a bucket-list trip: daily housekeeping to keep things spic and span, spa treatments for when you need a little R&R, wine tastings for the adults, yoga sessions with epic views, and even round-the-clock babysitting. All of this can be arranged to make your stay feel even more indulgent.
Maison Emilion, France
This rustic French villa is practically made for wine lovers, aptly located amidst the rolling vineyards of Bordeaux. This six-bedroom hilltop hangout boasts views of the working vineyards from every angle, including from the heated pool and surrounding sunbeds. Wander into the nearby village of Saint-Émilion, then enjoy the included wine-tasting experience before settling into the garden for dinner with nothing but the glow of flickering candlelight and the moonlit sky.
Oleander, Corfu
It doesn’t get much more luxurious than Oleander in Corfu, a five-bedroom villa overlooking Avlaki Bay and the picturesque town of Kassiopi. It’s located high above the Ionian Sea and is the ideal villa for memorable summer celebrations. Soak up the sunshine from the infinity pool while enjoying views of Albania’s craggy Ceraunian Mountains, or hang out on the wrap-around terraces and communal outside dining areas. During peak season at Oleander, chef service is also included, so you can enjoy meals with your loved ones without even having to leave the villa.
Spirit of Son Fuster, Mallorca
Spirit of Son Fuster in Mallorca is hard to beat for large groups and multigenerational stays. This five-star bolthole is set in a stunning natural landscape at the foot of the Alaro twin mountains, right near the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Serra de Tramuntana, and is as secluded as it gets. This gorgeous 14th-century manor house sleeps twenty people across ten bedrooms and even has its own on-site spa and hammam where everyone can enjoy treatments in the dedicated treatment rooms. There’s even a private cinema room for movie nights and a well-stocked wine cellar filled with local vintage wines.
Masseria Giardini, Puglia
Masseria Giardini in Puglia is the height of luxury and the perfect home-away-from-home for families and large groups. It was built in 1750 and is surrounded by leafy olive groves and landscaped gardens curated by Chelsea Flower Show winners Urquhart & Hunt. Enjoy unparalleled views of the Canale Di Pirro Valley from this ten-bedroom farmhouse and spend days lazing around in the heated pool. This villa is an architectural masterpiece, with signature stone domed roofs and hand-carved stone baths in five of the ten bedrooms.
For more travel information and inspiration and to book your perfect villa getaway, visit CV Villas
Qatar pushes back on reports of $400M Boeing jet gift to Trump
Qatari officials have described reports that the country’s royal family is gifting a $400 million Boeing jet to President Donald Trump as “inaccurate.”
ABC News reported Sunday that the plane would be available to President Donald Trump to use as the new Air Force One until shortly before his departure, at which point it will be transferred to the foundation responsible for the Trump presidential library.
The president has made it no secret that he is tired of waiting for Boeing to produce a new Air Force One to replace the current planes, two modified 747-200 jumbo jets known by the model number VC-25A, which date from 1990.
Ali Al-Ansari, Qatar’s Media Attaché to the US, told Politico that the deal involving the plane had yet to be finalized.
“The possible transfer of an aircraft for temporary use as Air Force One is currently under consideration between Qatar’s Ministry of Defense and the U.S. Department of Defense, but the matter remains under review by the respective legal departments, and no decision has been made,” Al-Ansari said.
In February, Trump said he was “not happy” with the slow progress and cost overruns on the new presidential aircraft, which were ordered in 2018, during his first term.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that the federal government is hiring defense contractor L3Harris to refurbish a Boeing 747 previously used by the Qatari government. It now appears that the plane will be gifted to the U.S. next week during Trump’s first official foreign trip, barring the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome.
ABC’s report cites sources that are familiar with the arrangements.
Trump toured the plane in February when it was parked at Palm Beach International Airport. It is said to be so opulently configured that it has been referred to as a “flying palace.”
The president hit out at those who were critical of the gift in a post on TruthSocial.
“So the fact that the Defense Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40 year old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction, so bothers the Crooked Democrats that they insist we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane. Anybody can do that! The Dems are World Class Losers!!! MAGA.”
Meanwhile, the arrangement has set off alarm bells about the legality of accepting such a valuable gift from a foreign government under the Constitution’s emoluments clause. The clause prohibits any government official from accepting gifts from “any King, Prince or foreign State.” Qatar is a U.S. ally and major diplomatic force in the Middle East.
Sources told ABC News that lawyers for the White House counsel’s office and the Department of Justice drafted an analysis for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that concluded it is legal for the Department of Defense to accept the aircraft as a gift and later turn it over to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation.
They claim it does not violate bribery laws as it is not conditioned on any official act and is not being given to an individual, but rather to the Air Force and then the Trump library.
Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House lawyer David Warrington said it would be “legally permissible” for the donation of the aircraft to be conditioned on transferring its ownership to Trump’s presidential library before the end of his term, and not the president, personally, the sources told the network.
They said Bondi provided a legal memorandum on the matter to the White House counsel’s office last week after her advice was sought on the legalities of the gift.
Nevertheless, Democrats and even Trump’s far-right ally Laura Loomer have condemned the reported arrangement.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on X: “Nothing says ‘America First’ like Air Force One, brought to you by Qatar. It’s not just bribery, it’s premium foreign influence with extra legroom.” There were similar allegations from others on social media.
Axios reports that Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York wrote to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the acting Department of Defense inspector general, and the Office of Government Ethics requesting a probe into the matter. The Democratic National Committee called it Trump’s “latest grift.”
Loomer also posted her disapproval: “I love President Trump. I would take a bullet for him. But, I have to call a spade a spade. We cannot accept a $400 million ‘gift’ from jihadists in suits.”
“The Qataris fund the same Iranian proxies in Hamas and Hezbollah who have murdered U.S. Service Members. The same proxies that have worked with the Mexican cartels to get jihadists across our border,” she continued, pushing a far-right conspiracy theory. “This is really going to be such a stain on the admin if this is true. And I say that as someone who would take a bullet for Trump. I’m so disappointed.”
Any aircraft used to transport the president must meet strict U.S. military specifications, and so the 13-year-old plane will initially be transferred to the Air Force for modifications.
The full scope of modifications is unknown, but existing planes include radiation shielding, a variety of communications systems, and anti-missile technology. Notably, neither the Qatari plane nor the upcoming VC-25B aircraft being built by Boeing will have the air-to-air refueling capabilities of the current presidential plane, allowing it to stay airborne essentially indefinitely and with unlimited range.
Once modified, Trump will be able to use the aircraft until January 1, 2029, when it will be transferred to the library, less than three weeks before his term ends. The Air Force will pay for any costs relating to its transfer, the sources told ABC News.
Boeing estimated that the new Air Force One planes currently on order will not be ready until 2029. Trump asked Elon Musk to work with them on the project, and an updated timeline of 2027 was given, though the president was insistent that he wants a new plane this year.
Trump will make his first official foreign trip of his second term this coming week, visiting Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. The focus will be on “economic agreements.”
The Trump Organization, run by the president’s two eldest sons, has growing interests in the Middle East. An ethics agreement released by the company in January forbids deals with foreign governments but allows those with private companies.
Four-year-old boy sent to hospital as 74 ill after petting farm trip
The parents of a four-year-old boy rushed to hospital after suffering an infection linked to a visit to a petting farm have spoken of their “nightmare” ordeal.
Public health officials are examining 74 cases of cryptosporidium linked to visits to Cowbridge Farm Shop at Marlborough Grange Farm in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan, during April.
Public Health Wales said the outbreak has resulted in 16 people having to stay in hospital for at least one night.
The farm has voluntarily ceased all public animal feeding activities and is cooperating with the investigation, the health watchdog added.
One of the children affected was named by his family as four-year-old Michael Carpenter, from Bridgend, who had visited the petting farm with his grandparents on 11 April.
The boy followed the rules, washing his hands and using a hand sanitiser after stroking some lambs before flying to Malaga with his family. Three days later, Michael’s temperature rose and he suffered severe diarrhoea, with the family being advised to take him to a local private hospital for tests.
His father Gareth, 46, told the BBC: “We were driving ourselves crazy.
“We were thinking, was it a bit of chicken he ate, or an ice cream his Nana gave him – she was feeling terrible about that – or was it something in the water?”
It cost £719 deposit to get Michael seen – and a £4,229 bill for the three days sent to hospital – luckily covered by the family’s insurance.
On their return to Wales, and with Michael still recovering from the effects of the parasite, they visited their GP, who took a stool sample.
Public Health Wales called Michael’s father the next day to say the test had shown Michael was infected with cryptosporidium and asked if the boy had been around any animals.
Cryptosporidium is a parasite that can cause gastrointestinal illness, often associated with contact with animals, especially young farm animals such as calves and lambs.
The boy’s mother, Kate, said: “It was an absolute nightmare.”
She said the boy’s grandmother “blames herself” for taking Michael to the petting farm, but “more information” had been given to people attending the petting sessions about the potential risks.
“It’s only when something happens that you realise how serious it is,” said Gareth.
“I would hate to see another parent go through the same thing.”
The main symptoms of a cryptosporidium infection include:
Public Health experts are warning those who have come into contact with infected cases to take extra care to avoid passing the infection onto others.
Su Mably, consultant in health protection for Public Health Wales, said: “We are continuing to work with our partners to investigate this outbreak. Although cryptosporidium infection is usually mild and clears up on its own, it can cause more serious illness in young children and people with weakened immune systems.
“If you visited the farm and feel unwell, please contact your GP or call NHS 111. It is possible for this infection to be passed on from one person to another, for example, if someone is caring for a family member who is unwell. It is important to protect yourself by washing your hands well, particularly before preparing food.”