Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said on Friday he would ask his players if they can win without injured teenage winger Lamine Yamal. The 17-year-old will miss the visit to face Celta Vigo today in La Liga with an ankle problem.Table-toppers Barcelona have failed to win the two matches he has not started this season. Yamal was on the bench as Barcelona were beaten 4-2 by Osasuna in September and missed the 1-0 loss at Real Sociedad before the international break. The Catalan giants have won the other 11 league matches they have played during a fine start to the campaign under the German coach.Asked if his team could win without Spain star Yamal, who has become a vital part of Barcelona’s attack, Flick said he would put that question to the squad. “I will ask the team this tomorrow, I think it’s a good question for them,” he told a news conference. “Lamine is for us very important but we also have to adapt to this – we have players who can play (instead of) him... Lamine cannot play tomorrow, we’ll see when he’s back. It’s important for us that he will (return at) 100 percent.”Flick would not be drawn on a potential replacement for Yamal, after using Fermin Lopez on the right flank to limited effect at Real Sociedad. “It could be Raphinha, it could be Dani (Olmo), Fermin, Pablo (Torre) or Pau (Victor), we have different options,” added the coach.Flick also said Gavi was fit enough to start after a long-term injury and a handful of substitute appearances on his way back to fitness. A win for Barcelona could take them nine points clear of Real Madrid before they visit Leganes tomorrow.Meanwhile, Diego Simeone will complete 700 games in charge of Atletico Madrid when his club hosts Alaves in La Liga this weekend and the Argentine manager said that he was grateful to reach that milestone even as rumours swirl about his future.Simeone is nearing 13 years in charge of Atletico having taken the job in December 2011 and the 54-year-old has since transformed the side from perennial underdogs to dangerous rivals to Real Madrid and Barcelona.The club has won two league titles, one Copa del Rey and two Europa League trophies while they also reached the Champions League final twice – losing to city rivals Real on both occasions. They remain a force to be reckoned with and Simeone’s record of 326 clean sheets is a testament to his side’s defensive prowess.Atletico’s start to the season has led to questions being raised in the media about his future. Atletico are third in LaLiga, seven points behind leaders Barcelona after five draws, while they are a lowly 23rd in the Champions League halfway through the new group stage. Simeone has a contract until June 2027 and is not bothered by speculationFixtures (all times GMT)Today: Valencia v Real Betis (1300), Atletico Madrid v Alaves (1515), Girona v Espanyol (1730), Las Palmas v Mallorca (1730), Celta Vigo v Barcelona (2000)Tomorrow: Osasuna v Villarreal (1300), Sevilla v Rayo Vallecano (1515), Leganes v Real Madrid (1730), Athletic Bilbao v Real Sociedad (2000)

Vladimir Putin’s hypersonic missile carried a simple message to the West over Ukraine: back off, and if you don’t, Russia reserves the right to hit US and British military facilities.Russia fired a new intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile known as “Oreshnik”, or Hazel Tree, at Ukraine on Thursday in what Putin said was a direct response to strikes on Russia by Ukrainian forces with US and British missiles.In a special statement from the Kremlin, the Russian president said the war was escalating towards a global conflict, though he avoided any nuclear rhetoric.Putin has also refrained, so far, from actually striking the West, a step that could lead to a direct confrontation between Russia and the Nato alliance — and a confrontation that US President Joe Biden said in March 2022 would be World War III.In his statement, the Kremlin chief gave the West notice that Russia reserved the right to strike at the military installations of countries that let Ukraine use their missiles to hit Russia — so far only the US and Britain.“Putin is saying to the West stop — halt — back off,” Sergei Markov, a former Kremlin adviser, told Reuters.“The signal Putin is sending to the world is that we consider these strikes as the direct entry of the US and Britain into a war against Russia,” he said. “But we are not responding with all our might right now because these strikes against Russia will not change the outcome of the war.” A Russian said Putin had hinted that he wanted to steer clear of escalation, though the odds of Russia using nuclear weapons remained pretty high.The source did not clarify whether he was talking about tactical battlefield weapons or long-range nuclear missiles.President Biden dropped his opposition to Ukraine firing US missiles at targets deep inside Russia in response to North Korea’s entry to the war, a shift in US policy that took on added urgency following Donald Trump’s Nov 5 election win, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.The decision could help to “Trump-proof” parts of Biden’s Ukraine agenda by strengthening Kyiv’s position in case it loses US support, one of the sources said.Russian officials cast the move by Biden as a reckless decision by a lame-duck outgoing administration aimed at creating a serious crisis for Trump to resolve when he is inaugurated as president in January.That puts Putin in a difficult position: if he escalates now, he could stoke just such a crisis. But if he doesn’t, then the West could interpret him as weak and keep pushing through clear Russian red lines.When Putin warned in September that Russia would update its nuclear doctrine to allow potentially a nuclear response to the use of conventional Western missiles to strike Russia, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said it was not the first time he had “rattled the nuclear sabre”.The day Ukraine fired US-made ATACMS missiles deep into Russian territory, Putin approved the lowering of the nuclear threshold flagged two months earlier.After Putin lowered the threshold, the Pentagon said that the US had not changed its nuclear posture — or observed a change in Russia’s nuclear posture.The Pentagon and Britain’s Ministry of Defence did not immediately respond to questions about whether they had changed any security postures in response to Putin’s threat to attack their military installations.When asked what the main message of Putin’s statement was, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said yesterday that the key thing was that Russia will react to “reckless actions” from Western countries which take part in strikes on Russia.“The Russian side has clearly demonstrated its capabilities, and the contours of further retaliatory actions in case our concerns are not taken into account are clearly outlined,” he said.

The first scientific conference of the Qatari Society for Family and Community Medicine began in Doha Friday. The two-day conference brings together more than 600 healthcare professionals to discuss the best and latest practices in family and community medicine. It also highlights the latest advancements and challenges faced in this field.The event features the participation of over 40 experts from Qatar and abroad, enriching discussions and sharing insights with healthcare workers in Qatar and the region. On the sidelines of the conference, there is an exhibition showcasing the latest scientific advancements in family and community medicine by sponsors and supporting organisations. Additionally, there is another exhibition featuring over 40 research abstracts focusing on studies and solutions to the challenges commonly faced in the family and community medicine sector.Chairperson of the Qatari Society for Family and Community Medicine Dr Samia al-Abdullah said that the conference aims to stimulate innovation and explore best practices in the field through the integration of artificial intelligence, precision medicine, and advanced technologies to revolutionise care and improve patient outcomes.She added that participants aim to foster a culture of patient safety and ethical decision-making among family and community medicine providers, emphasising emotional intelligence and psychological safety in the workplace. She also highlighted the importance of research and its opportunities for advancing family and community medicine by focusing on significant studies and encouraging evidence-based guidelines.Dr al-Abdullah expressed pride in the society’s contribution to showcasing a large number of distinguished Qatari professionals who enrich the discussions and share their experiences and recommendations. Over 100 Qatari doctors specialising in family and community medicine from various sectors in the country have registered for the conference.Dr Amal al-Ali, Chair of the Scientific Committee, stated that the speakers would provide updates on managing chronic conditions such as diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and chronic pain, with a focus on family medicine practices and reviews. She noted that the conference offers hands-on training and clinical workshops in essential diagnostic skills, including ECG interpretation, clinical advice in family and community medicine, the impact of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) on diabetes care, and medical ethics.Among the panel discussions, practitioners will be equipped with tools to identify, assess, and treat anxiety disorders, depression, and sleep disorders, enhancing mental health care in family and community medicine. She also highlighted a competition for the best research abstracts presented at the research exhibition, which includes over 40 scientific studies submitted by numerous healthcare professionals across various specialities, focusing on advancements in family and community medicine.The Qatari Society for Family and Community Medicine is a non-profit professional organisation under the umbrella of the Qatar Medical Association. Its primary goal is to enhance the scientific and practical skills of doctors while promoting community engagement to increase public awareness.