“Cut him in half and he will bleed pure red,” gushed Sky’s commentator Ian Darke about Jamie Carragher, before Andy Gray pointed out to him that the same could be said for the rest of us.

Basque MPs gathered today to vote on a hotly-contested plan that would turn their troubled region into a virtually sovereign state – the stiffest challenge to the Spanish government since the Basque country gained broad autonomy 25 years ago.

LANCE ARMSTRONG took what looks like an unshakeable grip on the yellow jersey in yesterday’s time-trial with a performance worthy of a man about to enter history by becoming the first cyclist to win a sixth Tour de France.