Page 1623 - Sports
Atletico bid to erase pain of finals past in Marseille
After painful defeats in recent continental finals, Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid are determined to justify their status as favourites in Wednesday's Europa League showpiece against Marseille in Lyon. Atletico lost in extra time to Real Madrid in the Champions League final of 2014, having been seconds away from victory in 90 minutes, and then lost on penalties to their city rivals in the final of the same competition two years later. An exit from this season's Champions League in the group stage came as a big surprise for a formidable side spearheaded by Antoine Griezmann in attack, but they have put that behind them to close on glory in Europe's less prestigious competition. Atletico are looking to win the Europa League for the third time in nine seasons, after triumphing in 2010 and again in 2012, shortly after 'Cholo' Simeone was appointed coach. "We can't wait for the final to come around," full-back Juanfran told Radio Marca as Atletico target a first trophy since 2014, when ..
Hibs striker Maclaren axed from Australia World Cup squad
In-form Hibernian striker Jamie Maclaren was axed from Australia's World Cup squad Tuesday as coach Bert van Marwijk trimmed it to 26 players, with Bristol City skipper Bailey Wright also cut. Long-term backup goalkeeper Mitch Langerak was another to miss out in the cut to the initial 32 selected last week, along with Alex Gersbach, Apostolos Giannou, and Aleksandar Susnjar. But Tim Cahill and fellow veteran Mark Milligan made the grade, keeping them on track for a fourth appearance at the football showpiece in Russia. "It is always a challenging task to reduce a squad, however this is the nature of professional sport at the highest level," said van Marwijk. "Overall, I believe we have named a strong and ambitious squad for our training camp in Turkey and friendly against the Czech Republic in Austria." The Socceroos link-up for their training camp in Antalya on Sunday ahead of the clash with the Czech Republic in St Polten on June 1. They also face Hungary in a warm-up match in ...
Mancini given job of rebuilding Italy
Former Manchester City and Inter Milan boss Roberto Mancini has been given the job of reviving the fortunes of Italy's national team six months after their shock failure to qualify for the World Cup. Italy have been without a permanent coach since Gian Piero Ventura was sacked after the four-time world champions failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1958. The Italian federation had been looking for a prestigious coach to rebuild an Azzurri side decimated after their play-off defeat to Sweden in the San Siro last November. The names of former Bayern Munich coach Carlo Ancelotti and Chelsea boss Antonio Conte had also been touted, with Ancelotti reported to have said "no". Mancini had shown an early interest in taking over the national side and was ready to sever his lucrative contract with Zenit Saint Petersburg. After his three-year contract was officially terminated by mutual consent on Sunday, the 53-year-old flew immediately to Rome on Monday morning and ...
Marquez to lead Mexico World Cup squad despite legal woes
Veteran defender Rafael Marquez was named Monday to Mexico's preliminary 28-player squad for the World Cup, despite his advancing years and legal woes in a US drug trafficking investigation. Marquez, 39, took a nearly three-month break from football after the US Treasury Department accused him last August of being a "front person" for a drug trafficking group based in the Mexican city of Guadalajara. But coach Juan Carlos Osorio said the former FC Barcelona player, who recently retired from Guadalajara club Atlas, would bring invaluable leadership. "Off the pitch, there's no debate, he's the footballer who can bring the most to this team," he said. Marquez, who will be playing in his fifth World Cup, was included in the squad as a midfielder rather than a defender. Brothers Giovani and Jonathan dos Santos, who both play for the Los Angeles Galaxy, were also named as midfielders. Osorio's list includes 12 players from European clubs and three from Major League Soccer in the United ...
Lo Celso, Icardi in Argentina's pre-World Cup
Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi and Juventus playmaker Paulo Dybala were given a World Cup boost after being included in a 35-man pre-selection squad for Russia 2018 on Monday. Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli included most of his big stars including Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero and Angel Di Maria and will whittle his choice down to 23 names for May 21 when he will officially announce his 23-man travelling party. Argentina are in Group B, which includes Iceland, Nigeria and Croatia. Goalkeepers: Sergio Romero (Manchester United/ENG), Nahuel Guzman (Tigres Monterrey/MEX), Wilfredo Caballero (Chelsea/ENG), Franco Armani (River Plate) Defenders: Gabriel Mercado (Sevilla/ESP), Federico Fazio (Roma/ITA), Nicolas Otamendi (Manchester City/ENG), German Pezzella (Fiorentina/ITA), Ramiro Funes Mori (Everton/ENG), Marcos Rojo (Manchester United/ENG), Nicolas Taglafico (Ajax/NED), Javier Mascherano (Hebei Fortune/CHN), Marcos Acuna (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Eduardo Salvio (Benfica/POR), Cristian ...
Tendulkar donates Rs 4 lakh to wheelchair cricket team
Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar has donated a sum of 4.39 lakhs to the Indian wheelchair cricket team on Monday.Wheelchair Cricket India Secretary-General Pradeep Raj told ANI that he had sent an e-mail to Sachin seeking some sponsorship following which the latter donated the required amount of money."I had emailed him (Sachin Tendulkar) and his office got in touch with me after three days. They asked me some questions and after some days Sachin donated the money to us. It is really a huge help from his side. We all are very excited and want to thank him," Raj said.He further revealed his and his team's plan to participate in the Asia Cup and aim at delivering their best.
Man City goalkeeper Ederson extends contract until 2025
Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson on Monday extended his contract to stay with the English football champions until 2025.
Italy's Roberta Vinci ends professional tennis career
AItaly's Roberta Vinci on Monday played her last professional tennis match at age 35, losing to Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia in the first round of the Italian Open here.
Djokovic thrashes Dolgopolov in first round of Italian Open
ASerbian tennis star Novak Djokovic thrashed Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-1, 6-3 in the first round of the Italian Open ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournament here on Monday.
Ireland vs Pakistan Test Scoreboard
Scoreboard today on day four of the one-off test between Ireland and Pakistan at Malahide Castle: Ed Joyce run out 43 William Porterfield c Ahmed b Amir 32 Andy Balbirnie lbw b Abbas 0 Niall O'Brien b Amir 18 Paul Stirling lbw b Abbas 11 Kevin O'Brien not out 118 Gary Wilson c Sohail 12 Stuart Thompson b Khan 53 Tyrone Kane not out 8 Extras: (1b, 18lb, 1nb, 4w) 24 TOTAL: (for 7 wickets) 319 Overs: 122 Still to bat: Boyd Rankin, Tim Murtagh Fall of wickets: 1-69, 2-69, 3-94, 4-95, 5-127, 6-157, 7-271 Bowling: Mohammad Amir 25.2-8-57-3, Mohammad Abbas 25-9-54-2, Rahat Ali 23-3-75-0, Faheem Ashraf 18-3-51-0, Shadab Khan 30.4-7-63-1. Toss: Ireland. Umpires: Nigel Llong and Richard Illingworth, England. TV umpire: Mark Hawthorne, Ireland. Match referee: Chris Broad, England.
Ireland fights back to set up possible win over Pakistan
Ireland has an outside chance of winning its inaugural cricket test after Kevin O'Brien led a second-innings recovery with an unbeaten century to lead Pakistan by 139 runs today heading into the final day. Hours earlier on day four, the Irish were facing the prospect of an innings defeat but they lost only three wickets in the final two sessions to reach stumps on 319-7 following on. Even a draw would be a marvelous achievement for a country which was awarded test status only last June. O'Brien became the first player to score a test century for Ireland and he was there at the close on 118 not out, with his 114-run partnership with Stuart Thompson (53) for the seventh wicket proving decisive. Tyrone Kane was with O'Brien on 8 not out. Mohammed Amir shrugged off a nagging knee problem to be the pick of the bowlers, finishing the day with figures of 3-57 as he reached 100 test wickets. The left-arm paceman's turbulent test career was interrupted by a jail sentence by an English court ..
IPL: RCB decimate KXIP by 10 wickets
Royal Challengers Bangalore dished out a ruthless performance, as they defeated Kings XI Punjab by 10 wickets at Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore on Monday.Keeping hopes alive in the Indian Premier League, skipper Virat Kohli (48 off 28 balls) and Umesh Yadav, who was chosen Man of the Match, were impressive with the bat and ball respectively.Chasing a target of 89, Kohli and Parthiv Patel (40 off 22 balls) finished in the ninth over itself.Earlier, R Ashwin-led side did not get off to a good start as their both openers, Lokesh Rahul and Chris Gayle, were back in the dugout inside five overs. After tottering at 41/2, the middle order completely failed to rebuild the innings.Except Aaron Finch (26), no one could reach double figures, as RCB bowlers were able to maintain the pressure throughout the KXIP's innings and kept knocking off wickets on regular intervals.RCB, thought at the seventh spot with 10 points from 12 matches, is still a contender for the play-offs. They would now have to
Thomas Tuchel named new coach at Paris Saint-Germain
German coach Thomas Tuchel has signed a contract to lead Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain for the next two seasons, the French club confirmed on Monday.
IPL: Bangalore trounce Punjab by 10 wickets
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) kept their slim hopes of making to the play-offs alive after hammering Kings XI Punjab by 10 wickets in an Indian Premier League (IPL) tie at the Holkar stadium here on Monday.
Recovering Neymar confirmed in Brazil's World Cup squad
Neymar has been confirmed in a Brazil 23-man World Cup squad of few surprises. Neymar has been recovering from right foot surgery in March. The only surprises were among the likely reserves for the tournament in Russia, with the inclusion of Shaktar Donetsk's Fred and Taisson. All but one of coach Tite's starting line-up in World Cup qualifiers was confirmed in the squad on Monday: Alisson; Miranda, Marquinhos and Marcelo; Casemiro, Paulinho, Renato Augusto and Philippe Coutinho; Neymar and Gabriel Jesus. Injured right back and team leader Dani Alves was replaced by Manchester City's Danilo and Corinthians' Fagner. Brazil will start its World Cup campaign against Switzerland on June 17, followed by Costa Rica and Serbia in Group E.
Peru captain Guerrero to miss World Cup over CAS doping ban
Peru captain Paolo Guerrero will miss the World Cup after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) imposed a 14-month doping ban on him on Monday. Striker Guerrero had been included in Peru's preliminary 25-man World Cup squad announced on Sunday after an initial six-month ban imposed by world football governing body FIFA expired earlier this month. The World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) appealed the length of Guerrero's ban, for testing positive for a metabolite of cocaine, while the player himself also appealed against his original sanction to CAS.
Buffon set to announce retirement
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon will hold a press conference on Thursday morning, during which he is expected to announce his retirement, the Serie A champions announced. The 40-year-old Italian international has said he intends to hang up his gloves at the end of the season, but as yet has not made an official announcement. Juventus sealed a seventh straight Serie A title on Sunday, to complete a league and cup double for the fourth year in a row. The club said in a statement without giving further details that the press conference would take place at the Allianz Stadium at 11.30 local time (0930 GMT). Buffon, who has won nine Serie A titles with the club since joining in 2001 from Parma, is expected to play his final game on Saturday against Verona in Turin.
Egypt banking on Salah's Liverpool form at World Cup
Egypt coach Hector Cuper is hoping star striker Mohamed Salah can transfer the stellar form he's shown for Liverpool this season to the national side at the World Cup in Russia. Salah, the Premier League and African player of the year, became a national hero over the leading role he played in helping Egypt qualify for their first World Cup finals in 28 years. "We hope that he will exploit the progress he's made as a striker at Liverpool," said Cuper on Monday. On Sunday, Salah set a new single-season Premier League scoring record after notching his 32nd goal of the season for Liverpool, surpassing the old mark of 31 goals he had shared with Alan Shearer, Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Suarez. Prudent and reserved as ever, Argentine Cuper refrained from making any World Cup predictions for 'The Pharaohs'. The competition will be "tough", he said of Egypt's Group A rivals Russia, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia. "But we have hope," he added. "We're optimistic." Egypt will play away to Kuwait on ...
Scoreboard of the Indian Premier League match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and ...
Scoreboard of the Indian Premier League match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab here today. Kings XI Punjab Innings: KL Rahul c de Grandhomme b Yadav 21 Chris Gayle c Mohammed Siraj b Yadav 18 Karun Nair c Kohli b Mohammed Siraj 1 Aaron Finch c Kohli b Ali 26 Marcus Stoinis b Chahal 2 Mayank Agarwal c Patel b de Grandhomme 2 Axar Patel not out 9 Ravichandran Ashwin run out (sub Negi/Patel) 0 Andrew Tye c Patel b Yadav 0 Mohit Sharma run out (de Villiers/Ali) 3 Ankit Rajpoot run out (Southee/Ali) 1 Extras: (LB-2, W-3) 5 Total: (all out in 15.1 overs) 88 Fall of wickets: 1-36, 2-41, 3-41, 4-50, 5-61, 6-78, 7-78, 8-79, 9-84, 10-88 Bowling: Yadav 4-0-23-3, Southee 2-0-19-0, Siraj 3-0-17-1, Chahal 2-0-6-1, de Grandhomme 2-0-8-1, Ali 2.1-0-13-1. 6.00 5 0 1 0 0 Royal Challengers Bangalore Innings: Virat Kohli not out 48 Parthiv Patel not out 40 Extras: (LB-2,NB-1,W-1) 4 Total: (for no loss in 8.1 overs) 92 Bowling: Ashwin 1-0-9-0, Tye 4-0-33-0, Rajpoot 1.1-0-21-0, ...
Nigeria name uncapped strikers for World Cup
Nigeria named uncapped strikers Simeon Nwankwo of Serie A side Crotone and Junior Lokosa, top scorer in Nigeria's domestic league, in a 30-man provisional squad Friday for the World Cup in Russia. 'Simy' Nwankwo has impressed in the Serie A with seven goals thus far, while Lokosa has netted 18 with Kano Pillars. A final squad of 23 players will be drawn from the provisional squad before the June 14-July 15 tournament starts. The full squad: Goalkeepers: Francis Uzoho (Deportivo La Coruna), Ikechukwu Ezenwa (Enyimba), Daniel Akpeyi (Chippa United), Dele Ajiboye (Plateau United) Defenders: Kenneth Omeruo (Kasimpasa), Elderson Echiejile (Cercle Brugge), Leon Balogun (Mainz 05), William Troost-Ekong, Shehu Abdullahi (Bursaspor), Ola Aina (Hull City), Tyronne Ebuehi (ADO Den Haag), Bryan Idowu (Amkar Perm), Stephen Eze (Lokomotiv Plodiv), Chiedozie Awaziem (FC Nantes) Midfielders: Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City), Ogenyi Onazi (Trabzonspor), Mikel John Obi (Tianjin Teda), John Ogu (Hapoel ...