Pneumatic beauty cruelly snatched from these shores

When Rafa Benitez let Mark Gonzalez move to Real Betis last year, the city of Liverpool didn’t just lose a tricky winger, but a splendid example of Waggery. Gonzalez’s fiancé Gisela Molinero battled for months to quit Chile for Merseyside, but she was denied by the Home Office. By the time she made it over to Blighty, she barely had a chance to pose in the Liverpool strip before being carted off to Spain. So sad.

The Betis missile launchers strike again

Fans of Real Betis have been performing their signature move again this weekend - bringing down the opposition with a well-hurled bottle. Last year they knocked Sevilla manager Juande Ramos out cold, on Saturday it was the turn of Bilbao keeper Armando Riveiro, who needed stitches in his eye. The fan, who has been left to contemplate the wisdom of his gesture in prison, has been banned from the stadium and Betis could be facing sanctions from the Spanish FA.

[The Offside]

The best sports programming this weekend

It’s that unmistakable time of year when Christmas decorations come down and minnow clubs up and down the land build up a huge sense of false expectation. This morning’s Sun backs Southern League Division One side Chasetown with a back page and double-page spread, but will support from the country’s most-loved red top be enough to overcome Cardiff? See how they fare in Saturday’s Match of the Day, and catch