Page 590 - Sports
Balotelli scores again in Marseille's 2-1 victory at Dijon
Mario Balotelli's second goal in three games helped Marseille to a 2-1 win at Dijon in the French league on Friday. The Italy striker, who joined last month from Nice, turned the ball in from close range in the 57th minute after winger Florian Thauvin headed on a corner from the right. Marseille's second straight victory moved the side up to fifth ahead of this weekend's matches, and also took some pressure off coach Rudi Garcia following a poor run of results. While Balotelli was the team's most dangerous player, a handling error from veteran goalkeeper Steve Mandanda led to Dijon's 18th-minute opener. Although Mandanda covered his near post to smother defender Fouad Chafik's long-range shot, he did not push the ball away far enough and midfielder Jordan Marie followed up to drive it home. Balotelli leveled before Argentine forward Lucas Ocampos produced a well-taken goal in the 73rd, cleverly cutting inside a defender on the edge of the area and curling the ball into the top corner.
Dzeko helps Roma win 3-0 at Chievo to go 4th in Serie A
Edin Dzeko is hitting top form at the right time for Roma. The Bosnia-Herzegovina forward scored one goal and set up another on Friday as his side won 3-0 at bottom club Chievo Verona. Dzeko, who also hit the crossbar, has now netted twice in three league matches, having failed to find the net in his previous nine. Stephan El Shaarawy opened the scoring in the ninth minute and Dzeko doubled Roma's lead in the 18th with a delightful goal, feinting past one defender on the byline before nutmegging another and firing an angled drive into the corner. The two scorers then combined for Roma's third goal six minutes into the second half. El Shaarawy raced down the left on the counter and picked out Dzeko, who set up Aleksandar Kolarov. El Shaarawy also hit the woodwork after being set up by Dzeko. Roma is fourth in Serie A, the final Champions League qualifying berth. AC Milan can move back above the capital side, though, with a win over Cagliari on Sunday. On Tuesday, Roma meets Porto in a .
Loan rangers - the fight to stop big clubs stockpiling talent
Michy Batshuayi's move to Crystal Palace right at the end of the January transfer window means the Belgian international striker has now played for three different clubs in the last year. After a successful stint at Borussia Dortmund in the second half of last season, Batshuayi flopped at Valencia but now the 25-year-old is aiming to rediscover his form, and maybe do enough to be given a second chance by Chelsea, his parent club. Batshuayi joined Chelsea from Marseille for 40 million euros in 2016 but is now one of a remarkable 42 players belonging to the London club who are currently out on loan. A glance at the Premier League's official website shows that Batshuayi was one of 10 Chelsea players to seal loan moves elsewhere in January -- others ranged from Alvaro Morata joining Atletico Madrid to teenage Croatian goalkeeper Karlo Ziger moving to non-league Sutton United. Many of the loan moves out of Chelsea in recent years have been to Vitesse Arnhem, the Dutch side with whom they ..
Can Sarri take solace in Guardiola's slow start at Man City?
Pep Guardiola and Maurizio Sarri share a mutual admiration and style of play, but as Chelsea visit Manchester City on Sunday, Sarri is also following Guardiola's experience of a difficult first year in England. Long forgotten now after romping to the Premier League with a record 100 points last season, City suffered some serious growing pains in Guardiola's debut campaign. Despite preparing for the Catalan's arrival for years with the hire of his former Barcelona colleagues Ferran Soriano and Txiki Begiristain, City scraped into the top four in 2016/17 by just three points thanks to winning their final four league games. Sarri acknowledged on Friday a return to Champions League football next season is Chelsea's target with a 12-point gap to City and Liverpool too big to bridge for the title. The Blues enter the weekend holding onto fourth by two points from a surging Manchester United with Arsenal just a point further back. That lead could be gone by kick-off at the Etihad, though, ...
Galaxy to unveil Beckham statue before season opener
A statue of former England and Manchester United star David Beckham will be unveiled next month by the Los Angeles Galaxy at the club's home stadium, the team announced Friday. The iconic midfielder -- who also had stints at Real Madrid, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain before retiring in 2013 -- will receive the honor before the Galaxy's March 2 Major League Soccer opener against Chicago. Beckham moved to MLS with the Galaxy in 2007 and played six seasons with the team, winning MLS titles in 2011 and 2012 and expanding the sport's popularity in America. The 43-year-old Englishman remains involved with MLS as a co-owner of future expansion club Inter Miami, which is set to take the field in 2020. Inter Miami is looking for a temporary home stadium until construction on its new venue is completed, with co-owner Jorge Mas telling the Miami Herald they have ruled out the retractable roof stadium of baseball's Miami Marlins and a venue for next year's home games will be announced in late .
Don't rule out Spurs title bid, says Winks
Harry Winks insists Tottenham still have a chance of gate-crashing the Premier League title race as they prepare to host Leicester on Sunday. Mauricio Pochettino's side go into this weekend's fixtures trailing five points behind leaders Manchester City and second placed Liverpool. But, while most pundits see third placed Tottenham as outsiders, they have won their last three league games to remain in touch with City and Liverpool. And, as City have shown by erasing Liverpool's seven-point lead over them, there are likely to be plenty of twists to come in the final weeks of the season. Winning the English title for the first time since 1961 would be a miraculous achievement given Tottenham haven't signed a single player in the last two transfer windows. Yet, with City and Liverpool still to face the north Londoners later this season, Winks is adamant they can't be counted out yet. "We lost to Wolves and people said that we were out of the title race and it's time for us to get top four
Brisbane Heat part ways with coach Vettori
The Big Bash League's Brisbane Heat were on the lookout for a new coach Saturday after former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori opted not to renew his contract. His decision came soon after fellow ex-Black Caps skipper Brendon McCullum confirmed that this would be his last season playing for the Heat in the Australian Twenty20 tournament. Vettori has been coach since 2015 and will end his tenure when the season finishes. The Heat have won their last three games and remain in contention for the semi-finals. "I have loved my time at Brisbane, firstly as a player and then as coach, and the experience of being part of the growth of the BBL has been personally rewarding," said Vettori. "I would like to thank the players for their efforts and wish them all the best in their respective careers." Heat general manager Andrew McShea thanked both Vettori and McCullum for their time with the club. "It's an end of an era for the Heat with both Brendon McCullum and now Dan leaving our club and we .
Meghalaya govt to rename Dikkibandi stadium after P A Sangma
The Meghalaya Cabinet has decided to rename the Dikkibandi stadium in Tura town after former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno A Sangma. The state Cabinet meeting Friday presided over by Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma approved the recommendations received from the state naming authority tasked with the job to name roads, and institutions after personalities, Home Minister James K Sanga told reporters. The Home minister said the Dikkibandi Stadium (formerly known as MP stadium) and a junction leading to AMPT road in Tura have been renamed after P A Sangma. Purno A Sangma is also a former chief minister of Meghalaya. He was elected from the Tura Lok Sabha seat a number of times. Conrad K Sangma and James K Sangma are sons of Purno A Sangma. He said the name MP stadium was not official and it was only in 2014 that the state government had renamed the stadium as Dikkibandi stadium. "There was a popular demand going to the fact that majority of the money spent on the construction of ...
Solskjaer keen to quickly turn Man Utd into title contenders
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has conceded defeat in chasing down Manchester City and Liverpool for the Premier League title race this season, but wants Manchester United to recover the title-winning mentality he harnessed as a player under Alex Ferguson within two years. Solskjaer has won seven and drawn one of his eight league games in caretaker charge to close in on a top-four finish, but United remain 14 points behind leaders City and Liverpool with 13 games left to play catch-up. United have not won the Premier League since Ferguson retired in 2013, securing just three major trophies -- one FA Cup, one League Cup and one Europa League -- in those six years. Solskjaer, who won 12 trophies as a United player under Ferguson between 1996 and 2007, does not know if he will still be managing the club once his temporary arrangement finishes at the end of this season. However, he is determined to ensure that, in the long term, United can become Premier League champions again, taking their victory
Australia's Renshaw agrees Kent deal
Australia batsman Matt Renshaw will play for Kent at the start of English season, featuring in the One-Day Cup as well as early County Championship fixtures. The opener is hoping his spell with Kent will help force his way into Australia's Ashes plans ahead of their tour to England later this year. Renshaw, who played in England for Somerset last season, was given his Australia debut at the age of just 20 in 2016 and has made one Test century to date. He has struggled to regain his place since making way for Cameron Bancroft before the 2017-18 Ashes series in Australia. Paul Downton, Kent's director of cricket, told the club website: "Matt is a young talent who is very hungry for success. "He has the ability to strengthen our batting line-up, which will be key at the beginning of the season with both Sam (Billings) and Joe (Denly) away playing in the IPL. We look forward to welcoming Matt into the squad.
IPC to lift ban on Russia paralympics
International Paralympic Committee (IPC) will provisionally lift the ban on Russian para-athletes competing in the Paralympics, next month.The ban was imposed in 2016 when the World Anti-Doping Agency-commissioned Mclaren report found out that Russia had run a state-sponsored doping program. Consequently, Russian Para athletes were barred from participating in the 2016 Rio Paralympics.IPC President Andrew Parsons, while talking about the decision, said that the suspension is "no longer necessary and proportionate," CNN reported.The Russian Paralympics Committee (RPC) had implemented 69 out of 70 reinstatement measures that included a robust testing program of Russian athletes under the WADA supervision, requested by the IPC to prove it is "now a very different organization to the one that it was prior to Rio 2016," Parsons continued.Parsons said the board had to decide between waiting for "a very unlikely Russian response" to the McLaren Report or "find another way forward" to ensure .
Klopp excited by Premier League title fight
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists the Premier League title race is something to get excited about rather than stressed about despite seeing his side overhauled by Manchester City in the past week. City climbed to the top of the table on goal difference with victory against Everton in midweek but Liverpool's destiny remains in their own hands as they have a game in hand over Pep Guardiola's men, with both sides level on 62 points. "It's getting exciting now," said Klopp on Friday. "There was never a doubt that would happen. That was always clear. I don't think that anybody thought we would be top of the league with 12 points between us and another team with three games to go. "The only chance to improve our position, even though it is a good position, is by winning football games." Just over a week ago Liverpool had the chance to move seven points clear at the top, but back-to-back draws with Leicester and West Ham on Monday have seen them reeled in by the champions. Liverpool ...
Kochi Blue Spikers beat Black Hawks Hyderabad 3-2
Kochi Blue Spikers beat Black Hawks Hyderabad 3-2 to notch up their hat-trick of wins for this season in the Pro Volleyball League here on Friday. The Kochi side won 12-15, 15-11, 15-12, 15-10, 14-15. David Lee showed his class for Kochi as he scored 12 points (7 spikes and 5 blocks). Ashwal Rai was the leading scorer for Hyderabad as he overshadowed his illustrious team-mate Carson Clark by scoring 15 points (11 spikes and 4 blocks). Rai put up an all-round performance and topped the list of players with the highest number of block points (10 points) from three matches.
'Motivated' Federer targets ninth Wimbledon crown
Shaking off his defeat in the Australian Open Roger Federer says he's "motivated and looking forward to the future" with a tilt at a ninth Wimbledon title uppermost in his mind. After his last 16 loss to Greek young gun Stefanos Tsitsipas in Melbourne last month, the Swiss 20-time Grand Slam champion was quick to brush aside suggestions it was the beginning of the end. In Geneva on Friday to launch the third edition of the Laver Cup, Federer mapped out his goals for the season with the hunger of a man carrying half his 37 years. "Wimbledon obviously, also now Dubai, Indian Wells and Miami. "I really would like to make a good season start, maybe that could launch the clay season and Wimbledon but I think Wimbledon yes, the US Open and after also the Laver Cup and the World Tour Finals at the end of the year." He said his failure to defend his Australian Open title changed nothing and his aim was the same as always - to beat Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. "I continue my career...I'm ..
Paralympics lift Russia doping suspension
The International Paralympic Committee said Friday it will reinstate Russia next month, lifting a suspension imposed more than two years ago over a doping scandal. The IPC will lift the ban by March 15, providing the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) adhere to strict conditions. "In August 2016 the IPC suspended the RPC because it was necessary and proportionate to the situation we faced and essential to ensure clean sport," IPC president Andrew Parsons said. "Twenty-nine months later it is the IPC governing board's firm belief that keeping the RPC suspended is no longer necessary and proportionate to the situation we now face in Russia." A year ago, the International Olympic Committee ended its ban on Russian athletes competing at future summer and winter Olympics, so the re-admittance of the Paralympic team is the latest step in Russia's gradual rehabilitation in the Olympic movement. The IPC said in a statement the Russian Paralympic Committee had met the necessary criteria for ...
Services sends defending champion Kerala packing
: Services beat Kerala 1-0 Friday in a Group 'B' match in the South Zone qualifier of the 73rd Santosh Trophy football tournament here to send the defending champion out of contention. Bikash Thapa's 63rd minute strike secured former champion Services' entry into the main rounds and sealed Kerala's fate. Kerala had drawn the two previous games against Telangana and Puducherry. In another match, Telangana was held to a goalless draw by Puducherry, ending the team's hopes of advancing. A victory for Kerala or a draw would have helped Telangana qualify. Karnataka qualified from Group 'B', after drawing its final league match with host Tamil Nadu.
ISL: No love lost as Chennai host Bengaluru (Preview)
Bengaluru FC mainstays Sunil Chhetri and Udanta Singh have been rested but the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) leaders will be confident they can get the victory that will take them to the play-offs.
Defending champions Railways make winning start at hockey nationals
Defending champions Railways, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh were amongst the winning teams on the opening day of the 9th Women National Hockey Championship here on Friday. Railway Sports Promotion Board beat Rajasthan 12-0 in their first Pool A match. Young striker Preeti Dubey (12', 30', 38', 51) starred for her team for four goals, while Priyanka Wankhede (2', 37', 52') and Navjot Kaur (47', 48', 59') scored thrice and Sushila Chanu (4'), Nikki Pradhan (53') scored a goal each. In another Pool A match, Karnataka beat Odisha 3-0. PA Pavithra (28'), Nisha PC (34') and Leelavathy Mallamada MJ (53) scored goals in the team's fine victory. In a Pool B match, Madhya Pradesh hammered Chhattisgarh 10-1. Karishma Singh (3', 17', 47'), Upasana Singh (6'), Narender Kaur (12', 59'), Neelu Dadiya (22'), Anjali Gautam (25', 26'), Pooja Rani (32') scored goals in their team's win while Balvinderkaur Mehra (53') was the lone goal scorer for Chhattisgarh.
India A women's hockey team lose to France A side
The India A women's hockey team suffered a 0-1 defeat at the hands of France A side in the first match here on Friday. In a match which could have gone either way, it was France's Ines Lardeur who scored the only goal of the match in the 37th minute through a penalty corner conversion. Both sides got sufficient opportunities to score but their defences were solid throughout the match, not allowing the forwards to convert their chances on multiple occasions. India A women's team, consisting of players from the India Development Core Group and a few youngsters who have recently represented the India senior team, found it difficult to produce a clear goal-scoring opportunity. On the other hand, the France A women's side utilised their opportunity in the 37th minute when they were awarded a penalty corner. Lardeur produced a calm finish to give her team an important lead in the match. The home side, led by captain Salima Tete and vice-captain Lalremsiami, tried to make inroads into the ...
Teenaged Patrick grabs pole position in MRF Challenge
Teenaged Finnish racer Patrick Pasma upstaged the MRF Challenge field with a blistering lap of one minute, 30.559 seconds at the Madras Motor Racing Track (MMRT) here on Friday, to grab the pole position ahead of Saturdays race.