Thursday’s briefing: Kane ruled out and mixed fortunes for Man Utd and Chelsea

England captain Harry Kane has been ruled out of his side’s match against Wales, while Cristiano Ronaldo has become football’s first billionaire.

The Women’s Champions League saw Manchester United get off to a winning start, but it was not the beginning Chelsea were hoping for.

Kane targets Latvia comeback

Thomas Tuchel has confirmed England captain Harry Kane will miss tonight’s friendly against Wales having been unable to kick a ball without pain this week.

Kane is expected to feature in Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier away to Latvia, but England’s all-time top scorer will miss the first game of the double-header due to a knock sustained late in Bayern Munich’s weekend win over Eintracht Frankfurt.

“It was too painful to kick a ball, it was too risky that he gets another kick and will just like be in an up and down situation pain-wise, so we gave him the chance that everything calms down,” Tuchel said.

“We are convinced that he will be ready for the match against Latvia.”

Chelsea draw frustrates Bompastor

Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor said her team’s 1-1 draw with Twente was “not a good result at all” after they made a muted start to their Women’s Champions League campaign.

The Blues produced a dominant display in Enschede but Bompastor’s decision to make seven changes to the team that drew with Manchester United failed to pay off.

And the result could have been even worse, a wonderful curling strike from Danique van Ginkel giving the home side the lead just past the hour mark, before Sandy Baltimore’s penalty saved her team’s blushes.

“It’s not a good result at all. We wanted to start the campaign with three points. We created a lot of opportunities and couldn’t score more than one. This is not enough when you play a Champions League game,” Bompastor said

Le Tissier strikes for United

Maya Le Tissier scored a first-half penalty as Manchester United launched their maiden Champions League campaign with a 1-0 win over Valerenga.

Skipper Le Tissier struck after 31 minutes as United saw off the Norwegians in their first match of the league phase at Leigh Sports Village.

Despite the narrow scoreline, it was a victory Marc Skinner’s side thoroughly deserved for a dominant display in which they created numerous chances.

Ronaldo’s career earnings top £1billion

Cristiano Ronaldo has become football’s first billionaire player, according to Bloomberg.

The 40-year-old’s net worth has been estimated at £1.04billion by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which tracks the world’s richest people.

Ronaldo’s valuation takes into account career earnings, investments and endorsements, with Bloomberg estimating his salary income between 2002 and 2023 was more than £410million.

His move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr in 2022 saw him sign for a reported annual salary of £177m and he has since signed a new deal which will keep him at the club until 2027. He also has a £13.4m a year sponsorship deal with Nike.

What’s on today

England host Wales in a friendly at Wembley, while Scotland take on Greece in a World Cup qualifier at Hampden Park.