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Posted by Guardian sport

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jan/18/premier-league-sporting-directors-who-are-they-and-how-much-power-do-they-all-have

A guide to each club’s setups, from Chelsea’s multi-headed structure to Brentford’s smooth planning and Manchester United’s muddles

The appointment of Andrea Berta as sporting director in March was greeted with much enthusiasm by Arsenal’s supporters, given his impressive track record in more than a decade at Atlético Madrid,. The Italian, who began his career in finance, has made an instant impression. Known as a shrewd negotiator, the suave and softly spoken 54-year-old masterminded Arsenal’s outlay of more than £250m in the summer that included the arrivals of Viktor Gyökeres, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke. Berta takes the lead on recruitment in consultation with Richard Garlick, who was promoted to chief executive in September, the manager, Mikel Arteta, and the co-chair Josh Kroenke. James Ellis, a former scout who then spent two years as head of recruitment, was appointed as technical director in the summer and is tasked with “delivering the club’s long-term player progression strategy”, with a focus on creating a pathway from academy to first team. Ed Aarons

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jan/18/premier-league-sporting-directors-who-are-they-and-how-much-power-do-they-all-have

Posted by Tumaini Carayol at John Cain Arena

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jan/18/britains-arthur-fery-delivers-australian-open-upset-with-win-over-20th-seed-flavio-cobolli

• Twenty-three-year-old dismantles unwell Italian

• First slam appearance as a direct qualifying entrant

For a few fleeting moments inside the vast John Cain Arena, it seemed like Arthur Fery had missed his opportunity. The 23-year-old’s attempts to serve out an excellent set against, the 20th seed at the Australian Open, Flavio Cobolli, had ended painfully. He quickly found himself serving down 5-6 against one of the best players in the world with his back to the wall.

These circumstances often do not favour the more inexperienced, lower-ranked players, but in one of the biggest matches of his career Fery made his own luck as he rose to the occasion and delivered the first great upset of the Australian Open, dismantling Cobolli 7-6 (1), 6-4, 6-1 to reach the second round for the first time.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jan/18/britains-arthur-fery-delivers-australian-open-upset-with-win-over-20th-seed-flavio-cobolli

Posted by Hannah Devlin Science correspondent

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jan/18/astronomers-revolutionary-moving-image-black-hole-cambridge-science

Newly appointed Cambridge professor says feat would accelerate scientific knowledge by an order of magnitude

Dark, hungry and inescapable: black holes are often portrayed as the ultimate cosmic villains.

But now astronomers are preparing to capture a movie of a supermassive black hole in action for the first time, in observations that could help reveal another side to these elusive – and perhaps misunderstood – space objects.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jan/18/astronomers-revolutionary-moving-image-black-hole-cambridge-science

Posted by Pete Wise

https://www.theguardian.com/thefilter/2026/jan/18/lumie-bodyclock-glow-150-sunrise-alarm-clock-review

Our reviewer loved this wake-up light more than any other he’s tested – it’s even knocked his previous best sunrise alarm off the top spot

• Read the full ranking in our sunrise alarm clock test

Since I first tested sunrise alarm clocks last winter, I’ve come to suspect that there’s no such thing as getting up on the wrong side of bed. What we ought to be worried about is waking up on the wrong side of dawn.

During summer (and other times of the year, for late risers), the sunrise begins to rouse us before we wake up. The brain kicks into gear and sends signals to initiate all sorts of bodily processes, from metabolism to hormone release, which helps us to feel ready for the day. It’s a fundament of our circadian rhythm – and we miss out on it whenever we wake before it gets light.

https://www.theguardian.com/thefilter/2026/jan/18/lumie-bodyclock-glow-150-sunrise-alarm-clock-review

Posted by Rachel Savage in Johannesburg

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/18/ethiopian-boys-young-men-abuse-smuggling-route-south-africa

With tens of thousands thought to be arriving each year, the ‘southern route’ is becoming more perilous and extortionary

On the evening of 5 January, residents driving through the suburb of Mulbarton in south Johannesburg saw five young men in the street dressed only in underwear.

They were later picked up along with seven other young men by South African police. Police said two were in a car involved in a high-speed chase. A 47-year-old Ethiopian man was arrested and charged with kidnapping and failing to stop when police instructed him to. The 12 men, originally thought to be teenagers but said by police to be 22 to 33, were charged with being in South Africa illegally.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/18/ethiopian-boys-young-men-abuse-smuggling-route-south-africa