Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola gave a brutally honest assessment of Ilkay Gundogan’s performance for the club against Newcastle United last weekend.

The German midfielder is expected to play a more prominent role in Manchester City’s starting lineup in the coming months and foreseeable future, especially given Rodri’s long injury layoff last week.

Gündogan played in defensive midfield against Slovan Bratislava on Tuesday evening and scored his first goal for Manchester City since returning to the club and his first goal for Manchester City since their FA Cup final against Manchester United in 2023.

That performance in Slovakia, and an all-round strong performance from the 33-year-old, was in stark contrast to a disappointing performance against Newcastle United in the Premier League on Saturday, when City were held to a 1-1 draw at St James’. Park.

Following Manchester City’s win in Slovakia, Pep Guardiola gave an honest assessment of Ilkay Gündogan’s performance against Newcastle ahead of the midweek game, but admitted the performance against Slovan Bratislava was more in line with the German’s usual standards.

“Tonight (Tuesday night) he played at a level that we know he can do. It’s his strong mentality,” Guardiola said. “The Newcastle game wasn’t really, really good, maybe one of the worst I’ve ever seen from him in the last eight, nine years!”

He continued: “But it happens, it’s rhythm. And that’s why he has to play, and he’s so intelligent in his position and in defensive midfield. He played a fantastic game today. Apart from the goal, the first one, he played a fantastic game.”

The confident 0-4 win in Bratislava now means that, in addition to their first goals and the first three points of the new league phase in the UEFA Champions League, Manchester City are now significantly higher up in the table.

Matchday 1’s 0-0 draw with Inter Milan left Pep Guardiola’s side 19th in the division, while their win this week took them into the automatic qualification places in the knockout group with six games to spare. -round brings.

Neil Harris says managers have to accept high standards when working for Cardiff City.

Millwall boss Harris managed Cardiff for 14 months before being sacked in January 2021.

Harris led the Bluebirds to the Championship play-offs in 2019/20 but was shown the door after six consecutive defeats.

He returned to the Cardiff City Stadium for the first time as Millwall were beaten 1-0 by a Cardiff side led by Omer Riza, who is in interim charge following the sacking of Erol Bulut last month.

Perry Ng’s header was enough for Cardiff’s first league win of the season.

Bulut’s departure – which came just 111 days after signing a two-year contract – has left Cardiff looking for a 12th permanent manager in 14 years.

When asked about the recent upheaval at his former club, Harris said: “Cardiff have had success, promotions, Premier League times and good championship periods over the last 20 years.

“The demand from the fan base and also the owners is to try and get into the top half, top six of the league – and fight to get promoted back to the Premier League.

“Obviously it was a bad start to the season and when I found myself after a bad run a change happened. We accept that as managers.

“When you sit in the hot seat here, you know how high the demand is.”

Harris added that he was “always disappointed” when managers leave Cardiff because “sometimes I wish people were given a bit more opportunity to extend their stay”.

However, the former striker said club owner Vincent Tan was entitled to expect success.

“On the other hand, Vincent is a good guy who has put a lot of money into the football club and has high standards,” added Harris.

“Erol will know. I’m glad Omer gets a chance. I’m disappointed he got his first win against us, but it gives the football club some time to make calm decisions.”

Daniel Day-Lewis was spotted driving around Manchester at the weekend after it was revealed he had decided to come out of retirement. On Sunday (September 29), the 67-year-old actor was spotted filming scenes for a brand new film.

Back in 2017, before the release of his film “Phantom Thread,” it was announced that he would not be returning to the big screen. However, he didn’t give a reason at the time.

A spokesman for the actor said in a statement: “He is eternally grateful to all of his collaborators and audiences over the many years.” He is best known for his performances in films such as “My Left Foot,” “Gangs of New York” and Known as “Lincoln”.

The Hollywood star looked unrecognizable as he sported a gray beard and mustache and looked a world away from his previous dark, long locks.

However, he has largely stayed out of the spotlight for the past seven years and at one point has not been filmed in public for about four years. Pictures showed him on a motorcycle with fellow star Sean Bean.

It is said that Daniel decided to come out of retirement for the film Anemone and was signed by his beloved son.

The star has three incredibly talented children, all of whom have gone into the art industry. 26-year-old Ronan is the director and is said to have already caused a stir in the industry.

His brothers are now said to be artists and models. The cast also includes English actress Samantha Morton, who was present during filming in Warrington.

Not much is known about the upcoming film as it is kept top secret and it is not clear what role Daniel will play.

He wore a trendy khaki puffer jacket and a white helmet as he drove Sean around.

There were a large number of crew members lining the streets to film the scenes and assist the star cast, with the scenes appearing to be action-packed.

However, it was said that the film will be set in the ’80s and 65-year-old Sean will play the role of a soldier.

Sean has appeared in countless films including The Lord of the Rings and also television shows such as Game of Thrones.

Both actors were seen riding a retro Honda Africa Twin motorcycle – Sean sat in the back, wearing a blue and black biker outfit.

1 The death toll from Hurricane Helene is rising
Rescue and recovery teams are searching for hundreds of missing people. (WP$)
+ Entire cities were washed away. (vox)
+ Electric vehicle owners in North Carolina use their cars to power their homes. (The Atlantic$)
+ It looks like things could get worse. (Slate$)

2 AI lab assistants are on the horizon
Google DeepMind and BioNTech are developing research models to help scientists. (FT$)
+ Meanwhile, OpenAI is making it easier to develop its voice assistants. (Reuters)
+ Amazon has apparently been working on a new internal chatbot. (Insider$)

3 The FTC was allowed to continue its case against Amazon
Amazon has fought to have the landmark antitrust case dismissed. (WP$)

4 The Kremlin ordered cyber attacks on NATO allies
The UK, US and Australia have identified the hackers, known as Evil Corp. (Bloomberg $), sanctioned.

5 insights into Google’s plan to reclaim its smart glasses crown
In the AI ​​space, it is lagging behind while its competitors are gaining ground. (The information $)
+ The coolest thing about smart glasses isn’t AR. It’s the AI. (MIT Technology Review)

6 Our genetic databases do not reflect the diversity of humanity
Especially throughout Latin America. (Undark Magazine)
+ This new genome map attempts to capture all human genetic variations. (MIT Technology Review)

7 Apple is desperately looking for workers in Vietnam
It offers them bonuses and gift incentives to join its manufacturing team. (rest of the world)

8 Take a look into the future of dentistry 🦷🪥
Including tooth-regenerating drugs and tiny mouth-cleaning bots. (WSJ$)

ROME – Pope Francis opened the second phase of his major Catholic reform project on Wednesday. The agenda included widespread calls for women to take on more responsible positions in the church, but an ordained parish was still excluded.

Francis led an opening Mass in St. Peter’s Square with the 368 bishops and laypeople who will meet behind closed doors over the next three weeks to discuss the future of the church and how it can better respond to the needs of today’s Catholics.

Some of the most contentious issues are officially off the table after they were met with resistance and objections at the synod’s first meeting last year. This includes caring for LGBTQ+ Catholics and allowing women to serve as deacons.

Francis has entrusted these issues to ten study groups working in parallel with the synod, raising the question of what exactly will emerge from the gathering when it closes on October 26 with a set of final proposals for Francis’ consideration.

Francis launched the reform process in 2021 to put into action his goal of creating a church that is more inclusive, humble and welcoming, and in which ordinary Catholics have a greater say in decision-making than the all-male priestly hierarchy.

The trial and the two-year survey of ordinary Catholics who informed it raised both hopes and fears that real change was afoot.

In his marching orders on Wednesday, Francis urged delegates to abandon their long-held and self-serving positions and truly listen to one another in order to “bring something new to life.”

“Otherwise we will find ourselves engaging in dialogues among deaf people in which participants try to advance their own concerns or agendas without listening to others and, above all, without listening to the voice of the Lord,” he said in his homily.

The first phase of the synod process ended last year with the conclusion that it was “urgent” to ensure greater participation of women in church leadership positions and with a call to continue theological and pastoral research to enable women to serve as deacons .

Deacons perform many of the same functions as priests, such as presiding at baptisms, weddings and funerals, but cannot celebrate Mass.

Proponents say allowing women as deacons would help address the shortage of Catholic priests and address long-standing complaints that women have a second-class status in the church: excluded from the priesthood but responsible for the lion’s share of the work, who educates the youth and takes care of them to make them sick and to pass on the faith to the next generations.

Opponents say that ordination of women to the diaconate would mark the beginning of a wavering trend toward the ordination of women to the priesthood. The Catholic Church reserves the priesthood for men and says Christ chose only men to be his 12 apostles.

Francis has repeatedly affirmed the exclusively male priesthood and, just this weekend, sharply criticized “dull-witted” agitators who advocate for a female diaconate. After a controversial visit to Belgium where he was challenged by female students, Francis said such calls were an attempt to “masculine women.”

His arguments have outraged advocates for women’s ordination, who have organized a series of events outside the synod in Rome this month to press their case.

“It is so insulting to keep saying that the only valid role that receives this pope’s approval is to be caring, namely being a mother, when you can be caring and mothering and be a priest,” Miriam said Duignan, a priestess trustee at the Wijngaards Institute for Catholic Research.

“It gives a spiritual stamp of recognition to sexism,” she said this week at a prayer event co-organized by the Women’s Ordination Conference. “It is so irresponsible and dangerous for him to constantly criticize, belittle, reject and demonize women who just say, ‘Stop lying.'” Stop hiding and stop trying to us to be demoted to second-class citizenship.’”

While ordained ministry for women is out of the question, numerous other proposals are being discussed, including requiring women to assume greater positions of responsibility in seminaries and serve as judges in canon courts, ruling on everything from the annulment of a marriage to Priest disciplinary proceedings.

The synod has 368 members, including 272 bishops and 96 non-bishops. A total of 85 women are taking part, including 54 women who are eligible to vote.

In addition to the delegates chosen by the respective bishops’ conferences, Francis himself named several members to participate, including two bishops from mainland China, many of his closest cardinal advisers and exiled Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Jose Alvarez.

The list of papally nominated members also includes the retired prefect of the Vatican Magisterium, Cardinal Gerhard Müller, who has made critical comments about the synod process and Francis’ pontificate as a whole.

In an essay this week on the German Catholic website kath.net, Müller focused in particular on the penitential liturgy that Francis celebrated on Tuesday, in which he asked for forgiveness for a variety of sins before the meeting began in order to acknowledge the church’s transgressions atone.

Mueller criticized what he called “newly invented sins” — including sins against the synod itself and the sin of “using doctrine as stones to hurl,” a reference to how conservatives see Francis’ reform efforts as undermining of traditional church teaching.

Mueller said such a long list of made-up sins “reads like a checklist of vigilantism and gender ideology, somewhat laboriously disguised as Christianity.”

The non-episcopal members named by the pope include the Rev. James Martin, an American Jesuit who leads an LGBTQ+ outreach ministry. Martin has a sympathetic ear for both Francis, who unilaterally approved same-sex blessings after the end of the synod’s first session, and the Rev. Timothy Radcliffe, who is one of the synod’s “spiritual assistants.”

In an essay this week in the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, Radcliffe made a strong case for even doubters in the church to see the good in LGBTQ+ Catholics and their relationships and why the church should welcome them.

“The acceptance of gay people is seen in some parts of the church as evidence of Western decadence,” he wrote. “But the church must fight for the lives and dignity of gay people, who still face the death penalty in 10 countries and criminal prosecution in 70. You have the right to live,” he said.

At the same time, those who oppose pastoral treatment of gays have gifts that the Western church should value, including a deep sense of divine life in all of creation, he said.

“The body of Christ needs all of our gifts,” he concluded.

NEW JERSEY – Thirty-six U.S. ports, including those in New York, New Jersey, were closed Tuesday as the union representing about 45,000 longshoremen went on strike for the first time since 1977.

ILA Strike Update: PROBLEMS l EFFECTS l HOLIDAY SHOPPING

***Click on each heading to jump to the corresponding topic.

Workers began picketing early Tuesday near ports along the East Coast.

A prolonged shutdown could drive up prices for goods across the country, potentially leading to shortages and price increases at retailers large and small as the holiday shopping season approaches.

The International Longshoremen’s Association is calling for significantly higher wages and an outright ban on the automation of cranes, gates and container trucks used to load and unload cargo at 36 U.S. ports. About half of the country’s cargo is handled by ship in these ports.

The contract between the ILA and the United States Maritime Alliance, which represents the ports, expired on Tuesday. Some progress was reported in talks late Monday night, but the union still went on strike.

The union’s opening offer called for a 77% pay increase over the six-year term of the contract, with President Harold Daggett saying it was necessary to offset inflation and years of small raises. ILA members earn a base salary of about $81,000 per year, but some can earn over $200,000 per year with large overtime hours.

On Monday evening, Allianz announced that it had increased its offer to 50% over six years and promised to maintain the automation limits from the old contract. Allianz also said its offer tripled employer retirement contributions and strengthened health care options.

If the strike were to be prolonged, companies would be forced to pay shippers for delays and would cause some goods to arrive late during the peak holiday shopping season – potentially impacting deliveries of everything from toys artificial Christmas trees to cars, coffee and vegetables.

Americans could also face higher prices as retailers feel the pinch of supply.

“Everyone from shipping companies to trade groups to maritime industry analysts are also warning of widespread impacts on the global supply chain,” reported The Maritime Executive, a maritime industry magazine and newsletter. “Sea-Intelligence estimated that for each day of a strike it would take four to six days to clear the backlog. They wrote that even a two-week strike could have an impact into 2025.”

Additionally, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation, 75% of the country’s banana imports were processed through the affected ports.

Chris Butler, CEO of the National Tree Company in New Jersey, tells the AP that if a strike only lasts a few days, there would still be time to unload Christmas trees, transport them to warehouses and prepare them for customers this season.

Ships carrying the trees were on their way to New York but would not arrive until Tuesday. If the strike continues, most of the trees will have to be stored until next Christmas, Butler warned.

If a strike keeps ports closed until November, about 150,000 Christmas trees could miss the peak shopping season, costing the National Tree Company and others. In a worst-case scenario, these costs could drive inflation and weigh on the U.S. economy.

A prolonged strike would require companies to compensate shippers for delays, potentially causing goods to arrive late during the peak holiday shopping season.

MAE ANDERSON and ANNE D’INNOCENZIO contributed to this report with the Associated Press.

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Slow Horses Season 4 Episode 5 “Grave Danger.”]

Slow horse in danger!

The penultimate episode of Slow horses Season 4 ends with River in the care of MI5 – specifically that of Emma Flyte (Ruth Bradley) – only for the mercenary Patrice (Tom Wozniczka), working for Frank Harkness (Hugo Weaving), to attack, leaving agents dead leaves behind, brings Emma down and takes River (Jack Lowden) with him. How will MI5, particularly First Desk Claude Whelan, react? TV Insider spoke to James Callis about this, his character’s dynamic with Diana Taverner (Kristin Scott Thomas), who is clearly much more comfortable taking charge, and more.

The fifth episode ends with River being filmed at the end of the episode. What can you say about how Claude deals with this in the finale?

James Callis: Claude always believes that he is doing the right thing, and you could say that the world is destroyed by people with good intentions. And to be fair, if you look at the picture you can see why he does what he does – at least I think I can. But I guess it’s like, you looked at Claude and he was gentle to a certain extent and respectful and all that stuff, and all of a sudden it’s like someone accelerated and went from zero to like 60 in three seconds. Oh damn, where did that come from? It’s like a flip.

There’s a lot of that, especially at the beginning of season four, where Claude is a bit of an ostrich. If I bury my head in the sand, it’s like maybe this will just go away, and then whatever, and this stuff won’t go away. Then it’s like: Okay, well, I tried the bouquet [way] or hopefully the thing will just work or just disappear and now I have to be a snake fighter today, I have to put this thing in my bag immediately. So [it’s] Learning at work.

Would you say he’s more comfortable in this job now than he was at the start of the season, or does he just want to feel more comfortable?

I’ve thought about it. To a certain extent, Claude got the job – not that he wasn’t looking for it, I mean his name must have been on a list, but he’s fascinating. It’s obviously not about what you obviously know, but about who you might know, and according to Ingrid, he’s considered the safer couple. So not only is Diana Taverner incredible at her job, she loves her job, she loves it.

Claude, I don’t think Claude does that. That’s what’s really interesting. It looks good, I have a paper here with MI5 written on it and that feels pretty good to send a letter. But when it comes to operational business, there is the saying: The head that wears the crown is heavy. And partly he’s a bit like an honorable boy scout or a schoolboy. It’s like if we follow the rules and dot the I’s and cross the T’s and everything will be like this… It’s like, no, no, it’s not that. This is not the case operationally. That’s not how it works. I guess Claude thinks about this all the time: we’re the good guys, we’re the good guys, and the good guys behave a certain way. Not necessarily.

The Claude-Diana dynamic is great. What did you enjoy most about it?

Everything. I just love being with Kristin. I guess I would try to make her laugh sometimes and the fact that she didn’t laugh made me laugh because she’ll never lose character and she’s just wonderful, wonderful. Occasionally I would look up and catch her because it was kind of a game of cat and mouse that she didn’t want to be a part of. She doesn’t want to be next to him, but she can’t exactly show him that she doesn’t like it that way. She has these little points where he’s not looking at her, where she’s rethinking her life choices, that she’s in the same room but has to get rid of it very quickly and somehow puts a smile on her face that she’s paying attention. Being with Kristin is like an acting masterclass. It’s just fantastic and also pretty high energy and friction, forwards and backwards. It was just so much fun to play the whole thing.

Will we see you in season 5?

There is a chance. There is a chance.

How much do you think Claude needs this control, and how much does he think he should just have it?

I think Claude is really entitled, which is also a problem. There’s this thing, well, of course I came to this place, it says on the door that I’m the man in charge, so I’m the man in charge. What do we do now? So it comes as a surprise to him that he has to prove that he knows what’s going on in this new arena. And there’s something really interesting about people. Some people are born to do this, others are not. There are certain things you can learn on the job, but if you’re not really suited for the job, it doesn’t matter what you do… Maybe you can apply the things you learn to another job, for which you might be more suitable for later.

There’s a point where it’s kind of like Claude isn’t leaving. There are certain things he will do. There are certain things he won’t do. Operationally, Diana Taverner will really do whatever it takes to get the job done. And if you want to be in charge of security, you have to have that kind of confidence so that you know, at least for yourself, that you’re doing the right thing. Claude definitely comes from committees and has worked with people in groups on strategies around computers and whatever. In fact, it’s a bit like Diana Taverner is Claude’s security blanket in this bizarre film – he wants to hold her, but she’s static.

Slow horsesSeason 4 finale, Wednesday, October 9, Apple TV+

“Old cars do nice, but they’re not functional,” Rob Howard told me one day this spring. “People don’t really admit they’re annoying. And you tend to find reasons not to drive them.” Howard isn’t immune to their charms: He has a small collection of cars that he tinkers with, including a 1957 Chevy Bel Air station wagon and a Toyota Land Cruiser from 1988. But to commute to and from work, he admitted, he drives a Rivian R1T electric truck. It’s just easier.

We spoke in his office, not far from San Francisco, surrounded by beautiful old cars that had just been put into working order. Howard is the founder and CEO of a small but growing company called Kindred Motorworks, which engages in restomodding: upgrading classic cars to make them more reliable and roadworthy, with new engines and modern safety features – and, in Kindred’s case, the Option for rechargeable, battery-powered electric motors. The trend isn’t actually new, but it has gained momentum in recent years as electrification technology became available to hobbyists and body shops. It’s now possible to turn an old gas guzzler into an electric car, provided you don’t drive yourself to death in the process. The appeal is obvious: people of all kinds, but especially people with a surplus of money and taste, want to drive around the city in a rare, classic automobile. At the same time, many of these people are increasingly open to switching to electric vehicles. And so a small group of companies have emerged that transform everything from an old Porsche 911 to a vintage VW bus into something you can plug in overnight.

A paradise for car nerds: The Kindred workshop with a vintage Bronco that is currently being restored.

Restomodding isn’t quite as exhilarating as the purist version of car restoration – what you see at car shows known as Concours d’Elegance, which are all about showcasing classic automobiles as if they had just rolled out of the factory. in immaculate condition with original parts. But adding modern power steering and air conditioning and a Bluetooth stereo system to an old car, not to mention an electric drive, isn’t exactly affordable. Florida’s FJ Company caught my eye this year because I wanted to purchase one of their own renovated Land Cruisers (sticker price: $266,800). In the UK, Everrati will electrify an old Porsche, starting at around £240,000 (that’s more than $300,000). Zelectric in San Diego, which has a two-year waiting list, will retrofit your dad’s 1969 Karmann Ghia with disc brakes, LED lights and Tesla batteries (plus 120 horsepower). Kindred has now focused on the humble Ford Bronco.

So far, the customers for electrified restomods are about who you would think: Robert Downey Jr. did an entire TV show, Downey’s dream carsabout his efforts to make his classic car collection more environmentally friendly. Julia Roberts, a representative for Kindred, told me she had pre-ordered one of their electrified VW microbuses. And yes, one of Kindred’s electrified Broncos starts at over 200,000. “It’s a luxury item,” Howard said. “We make no apologies for that, because there is a lot of craftsmanship involved in this matter. A very unique vehicle.”

When I was there, the company was producing four Broncos per month, although Howard said they were on track to soon produce ten per month. In any case, everything that could be produced by 2025 has already been sold out. But Howard caught my attention when he said he planned to limit electric Bronco production to 100 vehicles per year — not because of shortages, he explained, but because Broncos weren’t the only car of interest.

NEW JERSEY – Thirty-six U.S. ports, including those in New York, New Jersey, were closed Tuesday as the union representing about 45,000 longshoremen went on strike for the first time since 1977.

ILA Strike Update: PROBLEMS l EFFECTS l HOLIDAY SHOPPING

***Click on each heading to jump to the corresponding topic.

Workers began picketing early Tuesday near ports along the East Coast.

A prolonged shutdown could drive up prices for goods across the country, potentially leading to shortages and price increases at retailers large and small as the holiday shopping season approaches.

The International Longshoremen’s Association is calling for significantly higher wages and an outright ban on the automation of cranes, gates and container trucks used to load and unload cargo at 36 U.S. ports. About half of the country’s cargo is handled by ship in these ports.

The contract between the ILA and the United States Maritime Alliance, which represents the ports, expired on Tuesday. Some progress was reported in talks late Monday night, but the union still went on strike.

The union’s opening offer called for a 77% pay increase over the six-year term of the contract, with President Harold Daggett saying it was necessary to offset inflation and years of small raises. ILA members earn a base salary of about $81,000 per year, but some can earn over $200,000 per year with large overtime hours.

On Monday evening, Allianz announced that it had increased its offer to 50% over six years and promised to maintain the automation limits from the old contract. Allianz also said its offer tripled employer retirement contributions and strengthened health care options.

If the strike were to be prolonged, companies would be forced to pay shippers for delays and would cause some goods to arrive late during the peak holiday shopping season – potentially impacting deliveries of everything from toys artificial Christmas trees to cars, coffee and vegetables.

Americans could also face higher prices as retailers feel the pinch of supply.

“Everyone from shipping companies to trade groups to maritime industry analysts are also warning of widespread impacts on the global supply chain,” reported The Maritime Executive, a maritime industry magazine and newsletter. “Sea-Intelligence estimated that for each day of a strike it would take four to six days to clear the backlog. They wrote that even a two-week strike could have an impact into 2025.”

Additionally, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation, 75% of the country’s banana imports were processed through the affected ports.

Chris Butler, CEO of the National Tree Company in New Jersey, tells the AP that if a strike only lasts a few days, there would still be time to unload Christmas trees, transport them to warehouses and prepare them for customers this season.

Ships carrying the trees were on their way to New York but would not arrive until Tuesday. If the strike continues, most of the trees will have to be stored until next Christmas, Butler warned.

If a strike keeps ports closed until November, about 150,000 Christmas trees could miss the peak shopping season, costing the National Tree Company and others. In a worst-case scenario, these costs could drive inflation and weigh on the U.S. economy.

A prolonged strike would require companies to compensate shippers for delays, potentially causing goods to arrive late during the peak holiday shopping season.

MAE ANDERSON and ANNE D’INNOCENZIO contributed to this report with the Associated Press.

The autumn budget is approaching and Chancellor Rachel Reeves has warned of difficult decisions on taxes, spending and pensions.

Reeves used one of her first parliamentary speeches as chancellor in July to highlight a “£22 billion hole in the public finances” inherited from the Tory government before Labor came to power in the general election.