People with meniscus tears who underwent surgery had poorer knee function and worse osteoarthritis after 10 years than those who did not

A common knee surgery for cartilage damage does not benefit patients and may lead to worse outcomes, a 10-year trial suggests.

The study tracked outcomes for patients treated for a meniscus tear, who were given a partial meniscectomy, one of the most common orthopaedic surgeries. Their trajectories were compared with patients who had randomly been assigned to receive “sham surgery”, in which no procedure was carried out.

Arsenal condemned a broken Leicester to a bottom-place finish in the WSL and kept the pressure on Manchester City at the top with a dominant win. Two goals each from Sweden’s Smilla Holmberg and Stina Blackstenius and one apiece from Frida Maanum, ­Mariona Caldentey and Leah Williamson, helped Arsenal reduce their goal-­difference deficit with the league leaders from 13 to six.

The Gunners had three games in hand going into the game and with City having lost against Brighton on Saturday, the door opened a crack for Arsenal. City need to win their final two games or win one and draw one while maintaining their superior goal difference to lift their first league title in 10 years.

The Premier League isn’t as fun and fizzy as PSG v Bayern but that’s the price of the twice-weekly churn that rewards discipline and sacrifice

In the novel Rabbit, Run , John Updike has one of his characters, a groovy and progressive 1960s priest, calling round to talk to his fellow minister, a hard German Lutheran, about the secret doubts he harbours about his faith. Is the doctrine really necessary? Is hell just, you know, a metaphor? He likes Jesus. But maybe he also likes sinful things, like sex and recklessly open attacking football.

The hard German Lutheran takes one look, curls his lip and tells the groovy progressive priest to get down on his knees in the kitchen and beg for forgiveness. Who is he to reason with divine suffering? Life is pain. Joy is pain. Pain is pain. Frankly, the groovy priest who likes flying full-backs and an open midfield disgusts him. He will burn in hell for his spineless debauchery. The groovy priest leaves in tears.

Russian president welcomed decision to extend Iran ceasefire in what US president said was a ‘very good conversation’

Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump discussed the war in Iran and floated a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine in a phone call on Wednesday.

In the call, which lasted more than 90 minutes, the Russian president said Moscow viewed the prospect of a US ground operation in Iran as dangerous, while welcoming Trump’s decision to extend a ceasefire in the region, according to Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign policy adviser.

Manager has helped players rediscover their form and they want to repay him with a fitting farewell in Europe

It’s an occasion Crystal Palace supporters have waited a lifetime for. Around 6,000 are expected to make the pilgrimage to southern Poland for the first leg of their Conference League semi-final against Shakhtar Donetsk on Thursday evening, with many travelling in expectation of eventually adding more silverware to the FA Cup and Community Shield they have already won under Oliver Glasner. Not that Glasner is thinking that far ahead.

“The road is shorter now,” said the Palace manager, who has consistently played down his side’s chances of adding to his Europa League triumph with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022. “But of course when you get to this stage of the competition everybody wants to win – nobody wants to play a semi-final and lose. That is the goal but whether we can achieve it I don’t know. We have a huge desire, we have really the confidence and the belief that we can win against Shakhtar Donetsk, but we also have huge respect for the team we are playing.”

Zohran Mamdani said he would not meet with UK monarch, noting 106-carat Indian diamond claimed by crown in 1849

In a way, it must be tough being king. One day, you’re lauded by the US president , applauded by Congress and served spring-herbed ravioli and parmesan emulsion on a golden plate.

The next, you’re essentially snubbed by the mayor of New York City, who makes it clear that a) he does not want to meet you, and b) you should return a diamond that your ancestors took from a 10-year-old Indian boy.

Justices rule in landmark decision Louisiana must redraw congressional map, largely killing major civil rights law

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The US supreme court has ruled that Louisiana will have to redraw its congressional map, in a landmark decision that effectively guts a major section of the Voting Rights Act.

In a 6-3 decision along partisan lines, the court rendered ineffective section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, the last remaining powerful provision of the 1965 civil rights law that prevents racial discrimination in voting. Section 2 has long been used to ensure minority voters are treated fairly in redistricting.

The Other Place, Stratford-upon-Avon
A 1950s Port of Spain setting simmers with political change and family tension in Martina Laird’s debut play

The air hangs heavy in Alma, a drinking club in 1950s Port of Spain, Trinidad. Heat and rum bring their own kind of languor – but in Martina Laird’s play, change is coming, both within a fractured family and in the wider world.

Alma is managed by a mother and daughter. Ellen Thomas gives the indomitable Pearl a basilisk glare but not maternal instincts (“the only thing I done wrong is to make children dat not worth nothing”). Ruby (an exuberant, citrussy Cat White) runs a honeypot scam on tourists, but doesn’t intend to “stay here in downtown hell”.

Sophie Corcoran challenging 10,000 Interns Foundation, which works with people from under-represented groups

An influencer is taking a charity that organises internships for black and minority ethnic people to court because they do not organise schemes for white people.

Sophie Corcoran, a GB News commentator, applied to a programme the 10,000 Interns Foundation was running with the Bar Council. She said she was “shocked to discover that the scheme is restricted to applicants of a particular racial background”.