UK wants minimal change on consumer standards post Brexit

Business welcomes Britain’s proposals, which are designed to minimize red tape.

LONDON — The U.K. wants as little change as possible in the way it and the EU recognize consumer standards and assess the safety of products after Brexit.

In a new position paper published Monday, the British government said that existing safety and standards tests for consumer goods carried out in either the U.K. or the EU before Brexit should still be valid in both markets after the U.K. leaves — sparing manufacturers red tape and duplicate testing.

“[It is] important that business and consumers are confident that goods placed on the market and in use across the U.K. and the EU comply with relevant product legislation,” the paper reads.

British businesses said the plan went further than the EU’s own proposals, which would require new tests for products entering the EU market after Brexit; a demand that the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said risked a “severe cliff-edge hitting consumers on both sides of the Channel.”

As both sides begin final preparations for next week’s fresh round of talks in Brussels, the U.K. also published a position paper calling for a mutual commitment to keep classified information shared during the period of the U.K.’s membership confidential after Brexit.

They are the latest in a series of papers that the British government is releasing in the run-up to October’s European Council summit, at which EU leaders will rule on whether Brexit talks have made “sufficient progress” to proceed to discussions of the future trading relationship.

David Davis, the U.K.’s Brexit secretary, is insisting that the country is ready to begin discussing the future relationship, alongside the terms of its divorce deal. He said the latest papers would give businesses and consumers “certainty and confidence in the U.K.’s status as an economic powerhouse” after Brexit.

The goods paper represents an attempt to limit the red tape that could be required of businesses on both sides of the Channel and to ensure free-flowing trade in products already on the market. For instance, it suggests that carmakers that have already gone through a regulatory process called type approval tests prior to the date of Brexit should not have to go through the process again after March 2019.

As well as calling for compliance tests to be mutually recognized, it proposes that the standards agencies that assess goods in the U.K. and EU should continue to be recognized by each side. The U.K. has already made a linked proposal that the professional qualifications of U.K. and EU workers involved in maintenance work on goods, and in other services linked to the goods trade, should be mutually recognized by both sides to avoid disruption.

A spokesperson for the European Commission welcomed the publication of the papers but declined to comment on the details. “We see it as a positive step towards really starting the process of negotiations,” the spokesperson said. “We have been preparing ourselves now for a very long time, our team is ready, it has been ready the whole month of August and we are now analyzing these papers.”

The CBI welcomed the U.K.’s stance. “The … position on goods is a significant improvement upon the EU’s current proposal, whose narrow definition would create a severe cliff-edge, hitting consumers on both sides of the Channel,” said John Foster, the organization’s director of campaigns.

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However, he said both sides’ first priority should be the “urgent agreement of interim arrangements” for the business and trading relationship after Brexit.

“The simplest way to achieve that is for the U.K. to stay in the single market and a customs union until a comprehensive new deal is in force,” he added. “Both sides should agree to move talks on to interim arrangements as soon as possible to stem the loss of investment.”

The British stance raises questions over the role of EU regulatory laws in the U.K. after Brexit, as the government has ruled out any continued role for the European Court of Justice.

Keir Starmer, Labour’s shadow Brexit secretary, said the proposals offered little new information or concrete proposals. “It is increasingly clear that the government are publishing bland, noncommittal papers as a smokescreen to mask their failure to make any meaningful progress on phase one’s core negotiating issues — including citizens’ rights,” he said.

“Instead of preparing the ground for failure, the government should focus on reaching an early agreement to the first stage of talks and make an early commitment to establish strong transitional arrangements.”

Labour MP Peter Kyle, speaking on behalf of the pro-EU campaign group Open Britain, said it was “increasingly clear” British companies would need to comply with EU standards whether or not the U.K. stayed in or out of the single market.

“The government’s position paper admits that continued oversight will be needed — something that is incompatible with their red line on leaving the jurisdiction of the ECJ,” he said.

A position paper on resolving disputes between the U.K. and the EU, which may clarify some aspects of the U.K.’s ECJ stance, is expected later this week.

The identities of two brothers connected to an investigation into the alleged attack on Empire actor Jussie Smollett were revealed Friday.

The two actors are named Abimbola “Abel” and Olabinjo “Ola” Osundairo and hail from Nigeria, according to the Daily Mail. On Wednesday, the pair were arrested by Chicago Police officers at O’Hare Airport upon arriving back to the U.S. from a trip to visit family in Nigeria and taken in for questioning.
Daily Mail reports:

DailyMail.com has identified photographs of one of the brothers inside the gym in Smollett’s apartment building in June. The gym is private to residents of the luxury condominium building.

…

The brothers’ names are also included on a list of evidence that was left at their home after Chicago PD officers ransacked it on Thursday and the pair are listed in public records as the tenants of that house.

In a video shared to Instagram January 9th, one of the brothers is seen practicing gym poses while playing a song by Smollett called “HaHa (I Love You).”

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A lawyer for the brothers told CBS 2 that her clients could be charged on Friday. “They were actually detained at customs at O’Hare airport yesterday around 5:45 p.m.,” lawyer Gloria Schmidt said. “They had no idea what was going on, and they’ve been detained since then.”

“When they first learned about what happened to him they were horrified. This is someone they know. This is someone they’ve worked with, so they don’t want to see somebody go through that,” she continued.

Schmidt confirmed to CBS 2 that the brothers were extras on Empire and went to the gym with Smollett.

“They are really baffled why they are people of interest,” the lawyer said. “They really don’t understand how they even got information that linked them to this horrific crime, but they are not guilty of it.”

Chicago police Anthony Guglielmi on Thursday said detectives were questioning the two individuals — but said neither of them were “considered suspects at this time.”

According to Guglielmi, the brothers were seen on surveillance cameras in the neighborhood where the alleged incident took place.

The developments come as law enforcement continues to investigate the case, which began with Smollett telling police two masked individuals shouted racist and homophobic insults at him and sprayed him with an unknown chemical substance on January 29. The 36-year-old also told law enforcement the alleged assailants looped a rope around his neck and shouted “This is MAGA country” before fleeing the scene.

Michel Barnier: UK must explain ‘precise negotiating position’

EU verdict on British prime minister’s Florence speech: good but not nearly enough.

The EU’s chief Brexit negotiator and other senior officials welcomed U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May’s speech in Florence as a signal of her willingness to move forward in a constructive fashion.

But they strongly criticized her for not providing sufficient clarity on the three main divorce issues: citizens’ rights, the financial settlement and Ireland.

In the EU’s official response, chief negotiator Michel Barnier described May’s speech as a welcome expression of a “willingness to move forward” but called for more clarity on virtually every point.

“Prime Minister May’s statements are a step forward but they must now be translated into a precise negotiating position of the U.K. government,” he said, referring to May’s reiteration that EU citizens in Britain would have their rights protected because ECJ rulings would be absorbed into U.K. law and U.K. courts could continue to take ECJ rulings into account after Brexit.

On the Irish border, he said the speech “does not clarify how the U.K. intends to honor its special responsibility for the consequences of its withdrawal for Ireland.”

And on the financial settlement — an area where May made an important, if unavoidable, concession — Barnier said it was far from certain that her offer to keep the EU’s current budget plan whole would be sufficient for the U.K. to meet all of its financial obligations as it leaves the EU.

“We look forward to the United Kingdom’s negotiators explaining the concrete implications of Prime Minister Theresa May’s speech,” Barnier said.

In his statement, Barnier also flashed warning signs over May’s request for a transition period, noting the U.K. would lose its voting rights and decision-making power as a member, but would still be required to obey EU law and meet all other obligations of membership in its single market.

“The fact that the government of the United Kingdom recognizes that leaving the European Union means that it cannot keep all the benefits of membership with fewer obligations than the other member states is welcome,” Barnier said, adding:  “The EU will continue to insist on sufficient progress in the key areas of the orderly withdrawal of the United Kingdom before opening discussions on the future relationship. Agreeing on the essential principles in these areas will create the trust that is needed for us to build a future relationship together.”

Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni echoed Barnier’s remarks.

Gentiloni — who sent a pointed message by not attending the speech even though it was in Italy — called May’s address “constructive.”

“Now time to put these to the test at the negotiations with the EU,” the Italian prime minister tweeted.

If Barnier was conciliatory but cautious, other EU officials reacted cooly to May’s speech, saying they saw no major breakthrough despite clear concessions on a transition period and a commitment to pay into the EU budget until the end of the current cycle.

Poland’s EU affairs minister, Konrad Szymanski, said in a statement that the financial settlement remained “the real problematic issue that remains to be resolved” and that the EU would agree to talk about a transitional period with the U.K. “only if that could lead to complete fulfillment of U.K.’s commitments.”

“Membership of the UK in the single market as well as the customs union translates into regulatory and financial obligations of the U.K. towards the EU,” Szymanski said.

In the European Parliament, which holds veto power over any withdrawal agreement with the U.K., there was little cheering.

Manfred Weber, leader of the European People’s Party group, criticized May’s speech and said it would only make the Brexit process harder. “In substance PM May is bringing no more clarity to London’s positions,” Weber tweeted. “I am even more concerned now.”

“Theresa May sounds like Donald Trump,” said Jo Leinen, a German Socialist MEP and member of the European Parliament’s Constitutional Affairs Committee. “May puts national selfishness over jointly agreed decisions in the EU.”

Leinen said May’s proposed future partnership amounted to “nothing more than a veto-right for Great Britain in all decisions,” and a continuation of its “pick-and-choose approach.”

“In other words: London expects a special treatment,” he said.

Senior diplomats working on Brexit had a previously scheduled meeting at the European Council on Friday afternoon, giving them a convenient opportunity to confer about May’s speech. They seemed mostly unimpressed.

“Mostly wordy or unclear,” one senior diplomat told POLITICO. “First and foremost, it now remains to be translated into action by negotiators on Monday. We don’t negotiate on the basis of a speech.”

Diplomats said they welcomed May’s assurance that the U.K. would fulfill its obligations to the EU’s current long-term budget plan, which runs through 2020. But their enthusiasm was muted because Brussels had never expected this to be a point of debate.

Another diplomat described May’s position on the financial settlement as “limited movement.”

There was generally negative reaction to May’s comments about the European Court of Justice and diplomats dismissed as unrealistic May’s continued demand for a bespoke trade deal.

Other proposals by May, on the U.K.’s own future legislation, on a new security partnership, and on future relations with the EU in general, were rebuffed as simultaneously unclear and irresponsibly premature.

Diplomats complained that May was persisting with the U.K.’s effort to try to fast-forward the future relationship, while giving short shrift to demand in Brussels for clarity on divorce terms.

One diplomat said May appeared to have a fundamental misreading of EU sentiment going forward. “She talks about EU and U.K. as if we are two equal countries wanting a relationship,” the diplomat said. “That’s fundamentally getting it wrong. They are leaving the EU. They are 60 million. We are 450.”

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An interview featuring actress Ellen Page blaming President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence for the “hate” that led to the hoax attack against Empire star Jussie Smollett has amassed over 18 million views.

Appearing on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert last month, the actress took particular aim at Pence over his long-held opposition to same-sex marriage.

“The vice president of America wishes I didn’t have the love with my wife,” Ellen Page explained. “If you are in a position of power and you hate people, and you want to cause suffering to them, you go through the trouble, you spend your career trying to cause suffering, what do you think is going to happen? Kids are going to be abused and they’re going to kill themselves, and people are going to be beaten on the street.”

The 31-year-old, who came out as a lesbian in 2014, also blasted the media for questioning Smollett’s version of events.

“I have traveled the world and I have met the most marginalized people you could meet. I am lucky to have this time and the privilege to say this,” she said tearfully. “This needs to fucking stop.”

“The urgency is so severe. But instead, we have a media that’s barely talking about it,” the Juno star ranted. We have a media that says it’s a debate that whether or not what happened to Jussie Smollett is a hate crime. It’s absurd. It’s not a fucking debate.”

Smollett, who is both black and gay, last month claimed he was the victim of a hate crime attack by two masked men shouting racist and homophobic slurs, telling police they looped a rope around his neck, doused him in an unidentified chemical substance and shouted “This is MAGA country!” before fleeing the scene.

Yet on Saturday evening, CNN crime and justice reporter Shimon Prokupecz reported that Chicago Police now believe that “Smollett paid two men to orchestrate the assault,” adding that the “the two men are now cooperating fully with law enforcement.”

Page’s interview currently has over 16.7 million views on Twitter, as well as a further 1.4 million views on YouTube. She has yet to publicly comment on the case’s latest development.

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Follow Ben Kew on Facebook, Twitter at @ben_kew, or email him at [email protected].

MADRID — Corporate pressure is mounting on the Catalan government led by Carles Puigdemont to back down from plans to declare unilateral independence from Spain after a chaotic referendum last Sunday.

The decision, which is testing the nerves of the political establishment and the country alike, could come as early as Monday, when the Catalan chamber is scheduled to discuss the results of the vote in a session that has already been banned by the Constitutional Court.

On Thursday, the executive board of Spain’s fourth-largest financial company, Banco Sabadell, based in Barcelona, decided to move its official registration out of Catalonia to the city of Alicante, the Spanish financial regulator confirmed.

The bank wants continued access to liquidity lines and cover under the European Central Bank, according to press reports. Despite the Catalan regional government’s assurances, the European Commission has maintained that an independent Catalonia would find itself outside the EU.

Josep Oliu, president of Banco Sabadell, told reporters the company would consider all “necessary measures” to protect its clients, adding that all decisions would take into account the fact that its largest market is the whole of Spain, which represents 70 percent of the bank’s business.

Sabadell stocks had fallen almost 10 percent this week, but the relocation news pushed them up 4 percent. On Wednesday, Spain’s stock market suffered the biggest fall since the Brexit referendum last year.

On Friday, the executive board of the country’s third-biggest lender, Caixabank, also based in Catalonia, will meet to consider a similar move, El País reported.

Meanwhile, the Spanish government is preparing a legal reform to be approved to facilitate the relocation of the official registration of a company’s headquarters from one place to another without the need to call a shareholders’ meeting, according to local reports. Such a reform, to be carried out on Friday, would clearly be aimed at easing Caixabank’s way out of Catalonia.

The fast-developing situation reflects growing anxiety among Catalan corporate leaders since Sunday’s vote, when 90 percent of ballots cast were in favor of secession. The Catalan government said 42 percent of the electorate took part in the vote — though it was deemed illegal by the Spanish government, the country’s courts, and the European Commission.

Some companies have moved or announced a move outside the region in the past few months. However, supporters of secession and unity alike interpreted Thursday’s news from the banks as a political gesture.

“The action of Sabadell can’t be interpreted as a legitimate decision to depart but as an attempt to exert political pressure,” tweeted Xavier Sala-i-Martin, a professor of economics at Columbia University and a die-hard advocate of independence.

“It’s a serious warning to Puigdemont: Don’t go ahead [with the declaration of independence],” said Carlos Rivadulla, vice president of Empresaris de Catalunya, an anti-independence business association. He described the sentiment among business leaders as “very worrying.”

Back in the summer, a major Catalan business association, Foment de Treball, labeled the Catalan government’s law on the independence referendum, which paved the way for Sunday’s vote, a “coup d’état” and an act of “enormous political irresponsibility.”

‘Everything is at stake’

Catalonia’s Vice President Oriol Junqueras played down the news in a TV interview, saying that in the age of the internet, “any company works with banks from all over the world,” and adding that Catalonia is beating records when it comes to foreign investment.

However, Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos told Bloomberg that the banks were signalling that “if this process goes on, they are totally open to relocating their headquarters to other places in Spain.”

“This is a clear indication of how insane is the regional government of Catalonia,” added De Guindos.

With little sign of any easy way out from the standoff between Madrid and Barcelona, all eyes are on the Catalan parliament on Monday to see what happens next. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy urged Puigdemont to drop plans for a unilateral declaration of independence, according to an interview with Efe news agency on Thursday. “That would spare worse evils,” the Spanish leader warned.

On Wednesday, Puigdemont asked again for international mediators to step in to resolve the conflict, while at the same time vowing to go ahead with his plans. Other players, like the far-left Podemos, who oppose the declaration of independence, have asked for mediation to de-escalate the situation. There have even been discreet attempts to get the Catholic Church involved in the issue.

The government in Madrid, however, doesn’t trust Puigdemont — one Cabinet source called him a kind of “illuminati” who is trying to gain the moral high ground to justify going ahead with independence.

Pro-independence organizations and political forces are divided about the wisdom of going ahead with the declaration of independence, which could prompt the central government to take control of the regional executive or declare a state of emergency. According to one Catalan political leader familiar with the situation, Puigdemont is among those pushing to go ahead.

“Everything is at stake here,” said Manuel Arias, a politics professor at the University of Málaga. “Not only the stability of the Spanish democracy … but also the whole configuration of Europe.”

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Angelina Jolie is not ruling out running for public office.

The 43-year-old actress and U.N. special envoy tells People magazine “never say never!” However, Jolie says she’s “looking to others for leadership.”

In her role with the U.N.’s High Commission for Refugees, Jolie recently urged nations to deploy more women peacekeepers in order to prevent sexual violence against refugees. Jolie says “we have to change laws that treat women as second-class citizens.”

Since breaking up with Brad Pitt more than two years ago, Jolie is focused on their six children and her work. Her oldest, Maddox, enters college in the fall.

She wrapped up her first starring movie role in four years in “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.” It’s due out in October.

The interview appears in People’s April 15 issue.

PARIS — Valéry Giscard d’Estaing wants to restart Europe — and move forward with fewer countries.

At 92, the former French president and a preeminent architect of the European Union moves and speaks more slowly than he used to. But he’s still trying to shape the future of the Continent.

“We created the European Economic Area under [former European Commission President] Jacques Delors, and the single currency under [former German Chancellor] Helmut Schmidt and myself,” he said.

“We should have continued, but we stopped,” he said. “We stopped halfway.”

Under Giscard’s presidency, France and Germany put in place the European monetary system that laid the ground for a single EU currency, and established the European Council, which is widely considered the most powerful institution in Brussels. It was also under Giscard’s tenure that members of the European Parliament were directly elected for the first time.

He later presided over the drafting of a constitution for the European Union, which was discarded after French voters rejected it in a 2005 referendum.

For Giscard, the EU’s last major step forward took place in 1992, with the Treaty of Maastricht, which laid the foundations for the euro and widely expanded cooperation between European countries. The lack of progress has left the Continent adrift in a world buffeted by ever more rapid change.

“At the time of the signing of the Treaty of Maastricht, China was not as important as it is today and the U.S. was very connected to Europe: We had a common trade policy,” he said. “Today all of this has changed; the world has changed but Europe has not moved forward.”

The bloc is now in a state of “profound confusion,” he said, because it is weak, bureaucratic, and “traditional methods are out of order and no longer produce satisfying and innovative results.”

In a 2014 book, “Europa: The Last Chance for Europe,” Giscard called for a rebooting of the European project, with the “urgent” construction of a “strong and federated” entity of 12 European nations that would include the six founding members (Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg) plus Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Austria, Finland and Poland.

The project calls for the creation of specific institutions, a single budget and tax system, without any treaty change.

Today, Giscard says it is not about creating a multispeed Europe. “I am not talking about a multispeed Europe,” he said. “Europa is one Europe at one speed that advances along the historic trajectory of Europe.” He insists the EU needs new ideas to encourage that trajectory in a changing world. In order to provide those, he is launching a new advocacy group called Re-imagine Europa, on April 11.

According to its chief executive Erika Widegren, Re-imagine Europa — which includes OECD head José Ángel Gurría and former Dutch Prime Minister Wim Kok on its advisory board — the group will focus on Giscard’s “clear-cut vision” of a “stronger nucleus” of EU countries.

She added that the countries Giscard thinks could work together may no longer be the 12 from his book since “things have changed drastically since 2014.”

“Re-Imagine Europa is a modern organisation to prepare the next steps to move towards Europa,” Widegren said.

The think tank’s first proposal, said Giscard, will be to modernize the EU’s fiscal system.

“It is not about aligning existing tax systems, but replacing them,” Giscard said. “We must get back to simpler and more comprehensible concepts.” The EU’s tax systems inherited from the 19th century are “very complicated, and overwhelmed with debt,” he added.

He said one of the major threats facing the EU is migration as it is linked to an overall increase of global population. The number of migrants will increase, he said, while Europe “has reached its capacity to welcome them.”

The EU should also reconsider some of the ideas that were included in his draft EU constitution, he said, including reducing the number of commissioners, cutting back on bureaucracy, and making better use of the subsidiarity principle, which reduces the authority of Brussels over issues better handled by national, regional or local governments.

What Giscard does not advocate is giving more power to European institutions. On the contrary, the bloc’s problems lie in part in the perception that Brussels has overreached in its attempts to wrest power from national governments. This has led to “a deformation of the European system,” which is “what makes it unpopular,” he said.

The EU has “let itself be caught up by excessive ambition because it saw itself as the government of Europe,” he said. “It is not the government of Europe. At the moment, Europe does not have a government.”

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MIDDAY BRIEF, IN BRIEF

Today at Commission, Myanmar and digital taxation

Aid will be sent to Caribbean islands hit by Hurricane Irma.

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On the agenda: State of the Union, Myanmar, Martin Selmayr, Hurricane Irma, Libya, taxing tech companies, Kosovo.

On the podium: Commission deputy spokesman Alexander Winterstein.

College of commissioners’ agenda: There’s only one subject that matters … Jean-Claude Juncker’s State of the European Union speech, which he’ll deliver on Wednesday morning in Strasbourg.

From one Nobel Prize winner to another: It took several questions, but the Commission finally said it was pressing Aung San Suu Kyi to play an active role in de-escalating tensions between the government of Myanmar, of which she is foreign minister, and the Rohingyas, a Muslim minority in the country. Maja Kocijančič, spokesperson for EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini, said “the EU is very engaged” on human rights in Myanmar. She didn’t answer when asked if the EU was considering sanctions against Naypyidaw. The security operation targeting the Rohingya community in Myanmar “seems a textbook example of ethnic cleansing,” the U.N.’s human rights chief has said.

Confirming what the (real) boss said: Winterstein confirmed that Martin Selmayr denied a story published in the Sunday Times that he threatened Peter Müller, of the German newspaper Der Spiegel, at an event in Brussels.

Financial assistance after Irma: Christos Stylianides, the European commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management, said the Commission is preparing €2 million in aid for Caribbean islands affected by Hurricane Irma.

(Another) Hungarian spat with the EU: Winterstein said he could not confirm if the Commission had received a letter from Ingeborg Gräßle, the German MEP who chairs the European Parliament’s budgetary control committee, about Hungary. She complained last week that Budapest was blocking a group of MEPs from making a visit to check if EU funds were being spent correctly. Winterstein said the Commission was “in close contact” with all EU countries when it comes to spending EU cash.

Libya criticism: The Commission had seen a report from the United Nations High Representative for Human Rights, who criticized the EU’s efforts in Libya to tackle the migration crisis. Foreign affairs spokeswoman Catherine Ray repeated an earlier statement that the EU is aware of the difficult conditions facing migrants in the North African country and said the EU had been helping train around 100 Libyan coastguard officials to rescue migrants at sea. She said an update on the EU’s work in Libya would be unveiled in the coming days or weeks.

On digital taxation: The Commission was “glad to see political interest” in taxing tech companies after the finance ministers of France, Germany, Italy and Spain called on Brussels to develop a new tax to force internet giants like Google and Facebook to pay more taxes in Europe. “It is not a new issue,” said Vanessa Mock, the Commission’s spokeswoman for taxation. Mock said EU finance ministers will discuss the issue in Tallinn at the weekend. Asked if EU-wide legislation could cause international clashes, the Commission said there is “political appetite” for such a tax.

A new government in Kosovo: The Commission welcomed the formation of a new government in Kosovo and called on the country to adopt “necessary reforms on the rule of law and on the economy.” Kocijančič said such reforms were crucial for the country’s future and its path to the European Union. She refused to comment on the composition of the new government.

What’s happening this week?: The commissioners will be in Strasbourg. Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas will speak to reporters at 3:30 p.m. And there’s a novelty for reporters, journalists in Brussels will be able to ask Schinas questions, even though he’s in Strasbourg!

The former Reds star can see the potential in a Gunners starlet, but is not convinced that Jurgen Klopp needs to be pushing to land the 18-year-old

Bukayo Saka may be sparking interest from Liverpool but the Reds should only be interested if the Arsenal youngster ever became available as a free agent, says Steve McManaman.

The 18-year-old Gunners academy graduate is only tied to terms at Emirates until the summer of 2021.

Those in north London are eager to put an extension in place, but no deal has been done as yet.

More teams

That has led to suggestions that Saka could be targeted by the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United, with Premier League rivals eager to buy into the teenager’s versatility and potential.

McManaman can see why a highly-rated talent is generating speculation, but is eager to point out that anyone arriving at Anfield to fill a role on the left, is going to have a “long wait” for regular action behind the likes of Andy Robertson.

“He looks like a really good player, but he’s incredibly young,” McManaman told HorseRacing.net.

“If there are contract issues and he ever becomes available on a free transfer then that’s a no brainer because you’re taking someone on a free contract who’s young and has a lot of potential.

“If he continues his development at left-back, then he’s not as good as Andy Robertson at the moment.

“If he does join Liverpool then he’s got a long wait and Liverpool already have a couple of young left-backs waiting in the wings who we’ve seen in the FA Cup this year, who would probably be on a par with Bukayo Saka at this moment in time.

“It all depends on numerous things such as economics and whether it’s a deal that Liverpool thinks is worth doing. They may think that it’s a deal not necessarily in need, but they may do it anyway.”

Liverpool are considered to be in greater need of attacking reinforcements this summer rather than another option for left-back or their midfield unit.

Arsenal are also understandably reluctant to part with a home-grown star.

Former Gunners winger Ray Parlour is eager to see an extension put in place, telling talkSPORT: “I think he has to get tied down now on a new contract. I think they are trying to organise it at the moment.”

Saka has 25 appearances for Arsenal this season, recording three goals and eight assists.

The tie isn’t over just yet, but last year’s Supporters’ Shield winners were introduced to typical themes in their first continental clash

Entering Tuesday’s match against Club Leon, it had been nearly four months since we’d seen Los Angeles FC take the field for an official match. It had been nearly four months since we’d seen a team widely heralded as one of the best MLS had been to offer. It had been nearly four months since that team came up short and ended their pursuit of an MLS Cup in the worst possible way.

And, when LAFC resurfaced in Mexico on Tuesday for their first ever Concacaf Champions League match, they very much looked like a team that hadn’t played in nearly four months.

On Tuesday, a team known for their creativity, their confidence and, ultimately, their quality didn’t display too much of any of those three chrachteristics.The end result was a 2-0 win for Club Leon, giving the Liga MX side the advantage heading towards the second leg while leaving the MLS side asking some all-too-familiar questions.

More teams

Tuesday’s match was LAFC’s first ever continental match, but the themes that have defined MLS clubs’ experience in this tournament were all there. There was the more-fit Mexican team, as Leon entered the match third in Liga MX. There was the home atmosphere, as Estadio Leon rocked and roared from the start. And there was the clumsiness from the MLS side, one that was playing its first real game of the year in the most difficult circumstances this region has to offer.

From the start, the hosts looked like the team in control. There was a sense that Leon never truly felt in danger, even if there were moments that appeared like they were in trouble. It was like an older sibling toying with someone younger, giving them enough of a chance to keep coming back but never enough to worry them.

While Leon had the depth and quality to diversify their attacks, LAFC’s strategy was clear: give the ball to Carlos Vela or Diego Rossi and pray. It was a strategy that worked well enough last season, with Vela shattering goal and assist records while Rossi broke through as one of the league’s top stars.

Vela, in particular, played with a purpose, and for good reason. In his return to Mexico, Vela was the subject of taunts and cheers whenever he was on the ball. He looked dangerous, but lacked the sharpness that defined his record-breaking season last year. And, as a result, LAFC floundered. As Vela goes, so goes LAFC.

Leon, meanwhile, found plenty of joy attacking an LAFC defense that looked like a unit lacking chemistry. After trading defensive centerpiece Walker Zimmerman just last week, this was always going to be a massive test. They didn’t completely fail, but they certainly didn’t pass either.

The first goal came in the 21st minute, when Jean Meneses was left all alone on the left side. LAFC defender Tristan Blackmon, a player earmarked as one that will need to step up for LAFC this season, was late to get over and skipped past almost immediately once he did. Meneses’ near-post shot left new goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer with no chance, and it was 1-0 Leon.

But the second goal was the real backbreaker. Heading back home with a 1-0 loss would be easy to stomach. LAFC can score at home and, even without the away goal, they would have backed themselves to turn things around. But 2-0, that’s a totally different task.

What will hurt the most is that it was entirely preventable. It was a bad turnover from substitute Mohamed El-Munir, some shaky defending from Dejan Jakovic and, most importantly, a simple finish from Angel Mena. It’s was the late goal of nightmares, one that could end LAFC’s hopes of being the first MLS side to lift this trophy before they even got going.

It was the latest example of Liga MX dominance in a competition that is known for just that. LAFC isn’t the first team to struggle in Mexico and last year’s Supporters’ Shield winners aren’t the only team to ever fail to find a rhythm in this tournament. Tuesday’s match is just the latest in a long list of letdowns and missed opportunities, with LAFC becoming the CCL’s latest MLS victim on Mexican soil.

LAFC won’t have to wait another four months to right Tuesday’s wrongs. That wait will only last nine days. But, barring a stunning result back in the U.S., LAFC will have plenty of what-ifs and what-happeneds to mull over in the weeks and months to come.