■ SPAIN
Matuzalem loaned to Lazio
Real Zaragoza have agreed to loan their Brazilian midfielder Francelino Matuzalem to Italian side Lazio for one season, the Spanish club said on Friday. “Real Zaragoza have reached an agreement for the season-long loan to Lazio of Francelino Matuzalem. The player will be in Rome to sign an agreement with the Italian club,” Zaragoza said in a statement on their Web site. The 28-year-old joined Zaragoza from Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk last year, but had been certain to leave after the Spanish side were relegated. Matuzalem played for Italian sides Brescia, Napoli, Parma and Piacenza before joining Shakhtar in 2004.
■ ENGLAND
Evra charged for brawl
Manchester United defender Patrice Evra and Chelsea groundsman Sam Bethell have been charged with improper conduct following a post-match brawl at Stamford Bridge last season. Evra briefly traded blows with Bethell following Chelsea’s 2-1 win over United on April 26 when members of the London club’s ground staff demanded that several United players, including the French defender, stop their warm-down on the pitch. The United players refused to leave and an angry row broke out between the stars and Chelsea stewards and ground staff. Now Evra will have to answer the FA charge, while Bethell has also been charged with using abusive language aggravated by reference to nationality-race. The FA, who took witness statements during their investigation, could hit Evra with a range of punishments, including a fine or ban.
■ GERMANY
Schweinsteiger keen to stay
Bayern Munich’s international midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger on Friday said he was determined to sign a new deal with the German first division champions. The 23-year-old, who has been in negotiations with the club’s management since the end of last season, was speaking as he returned for his first training session under new coach Jurgen Klinsmann. “My first choice will be Bayern. Bayern is my home,” said Schweinsteiger, who came through the club’s youth ranks and has scored 15 goals since making his first team debut in 2002.
■ ENGLAND
Kitson signs for the Potters
Stoke City signed Reading striker Dave Kitson for a club record fee of £5.5 million (US$11 million) on Friday. Kitson agreed a three-year contract after passing a medical at the Britannia Stadium and becomes Stoke’s first signing since they won promotion to the Premier League last season. The 28-year-old scored 54 goals in 111 appearances for Reading, helping the Royals into the Premier League for the first time in their history in 2006. But relegation last season persuaded Kitson that it was time to move on. “I’m delighted to be here and I am very excited about the challenge,” he said.
■ ITALY
Clubs may be docked points
Serie A team Atalanta and Serie B club Livorno could begin next season with six-point penalties if found guilty in a match-fixing probe, Italy’s soccer federation said on Friday. The federation’s prosecutor requested the penalties in a hearing of the disciplinary commission, which is expected to rule next week. The prosecutor also requested suspensions for two players charged with attempting to fix the two league games between their teams last season. Livorno captain David Balleri and Atalanta captain Gian Paolo Bellini could be disqualified for three years and one month.
■ BASKETBALL
Nowitzki shines for Germany
Dirk Nowitzki overcame an early shooting slump to score a game-high 20 points and lead Germany past Brazil 78-65 and into the semi-finals of the Olympic basketball qualifier in Athens on Friday. Greece, Puerto Rico and Croatia also advanced to yesterday’s semis. Germany were to face Croatia and Greece were to play Puerto Rico. The semi-finals winners will qualify for the 12-team Olympic tournament, while the losers will play today for the final berth. While Nowitzki started out shooting 1-for-8, Germany kept itself in the game thanks to its outside shooting. Overall, it made 13-of-26 3-pointers to Brazil’s 3-for-19. Nowitzki is now the tournament’s top scorer, averaging 23.7 after three games.
■ ICE HOCKEY
Toews to captain Hawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are counting on youthful energy to make up for any lack of experience on the part of new captain Jonathan Toews. The National Hockey League (NHL) club on Friday made the 20-year-old Toews the third-youngest player in the history of the league to hold the title of captain. He has played 64 NHL games. Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby was appointed captain of the Penguins in May last year at 19 years, 297 days, while Tampa Bay’s Vincent Lecavalier took the helm of the Lightning in March 2000 at 19 years, 330 days.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB