Brian Nugent scratches his head and tries to tot up the number of days he has spent abroad with Irish cyclists this year — but can only offer a very rough estimate. “A lot,” he eventually settles for.

Arsene Wenger today turned down Chelsea’s Champions League challenge and insisted he does not want tomorrow’s quarter-finals draw to throw up a ‘Battle of Britain’ with Arsenal’s London rivals.

Leeds and Rangers will play each other in a `Battle of Britain' UEFA Cup quarter-final next March if they can beat tough Dutch opposition in the fourth round following the Cup draw.