■ SOCCER
Di Natale downplays penalty
Udinese forward Antonio Di Natale said on Saturday he has put last month’s costly Euro 2008 penalty miss against Spain well and truly behind him. Di Natale was one of two Italy players to miss penalties in the quarter-final shoot-out that Spain won before going on to lift the trophy in Vienna. But Di Natale, whose only start in the competition came in Italy’s embarrassing opening 3-0 drubbing at the hands of the Netherlands, says he is not letting that affect him ahead of the new season. “I feel calm and collected. I realize I can’t live off memories, obviously I look back at the good ones but like everyone I have to start from scratch again,” he said.
■ SOCCER
United to tour South Africa
Sir Alex Ferguson insisted Manchester United will tour South Africa again after winning Vodacom Challenge on Saturday — but admitted that plans to return in 2010, World Cup year, are unlikely to bear fruit. Goals from Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney, Tom Cleverley and Fraizer Campbell sealed a 4-0 win against Kaizer Chiefs at Loftus Versfeld to complete United’s three-game tour of the country. United immediately flew out of Johannesburg for a game against Premier League rivals Portsmouth in Abuja, Nigeria, on Sunday, but Ferguson admitted that he is keen for the club to make another visit to South Africa in the near future.
■ SOCCER
10 injured in Budapest riots
At least 10 people were injured Saturday when supporters of Budapest football club Honved clashed with fans of Austria’s Sturm Graz during a match in the Hungarian capital. While Sturm Graz qualified for the Intertoto Cup during the 3rd round after winning 0-0, and then 2-1 late on Saturday in Budapest, rival supporters clashed throughout the day. Police detained an Austrian man after he damaged a police car. During the match, Austrian supporters threw smoke bombs in the stadium where the two clubs faced off. Sturm Graz chief Hans Rinner said he regretted the use of the devices by supporters of his club, but said Honved Budapest stewards had “clamped down brutally” on thousands of Austrians.
■ VOLLEYBALL
US upsets Brazil in semis
The US upset five-time defending champion Brazil 25-23, 25-22, 27-25 on Saturday to reach the World League volleyball final in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Clayton Stanley had three aces to lead the US with 16 points, while Brazil’s Dante Guimaraes Amaral picked up 17. Serbia also advanced to yesterday’s final, beating Russia 25-19, 25-19, 25-23 behind 22 points from Ivan Miljkovic. The last time Brazil failed to win the World League title was in 2002, when it finished second. “We made several of the same mistakes we have made in the past and in a match like this one they can make all the difference,” Brazil’s Andre Heller said.
■ VOLLEYBALL
Messi hits hat-trick in win
Argentine star Lionel Messi, currently at the center of an Olympic Games club-or-country row, hit a hat-trick in Barcelona’s 5-1 pre-season friendly win over Scotland’s Dundee United on Saturday. Messi found the target in the 51st, 75th and 78th minutes while Thierry Henry (26) and Samuel Eto’o (60) added to the scoreline after the Scots had taken a shock lead. Barcelona insist that Messi cannot play in the Beijing Olympics as he’s wanted for the club’s opening Champions League qualifier.
SSC Napoli’s Italian Serie A title hopes suffered a late setback on Sunday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Genoa, setting up a thrilling season finale with closest rivals Inter just one point behind. The hosts remain top with 78 points, holding a slim lead over Inter, who won 2-0 at Torino earlier on Sunday, with two rounds remaining. To make matters worse for Napoli, midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, struggling with an ankle injury, was forced off just minutes after the match began. Scott McTominay delivered a perfect pass into the box where Romelu Lukaku got
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
INTER AWAIT: Superb saves by PSG ’keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma inspired the victory, as Arsenal were punished for misses, including one by Bukayo Saka Arsenal on Wednesday fell short on the big stage again as their painful UEFA Champions League semi-final exit against Paris Saint-Germain left Mikel Arteta to rue his club’s failure to provide him with enough attacking options. Arteta’s side were unable to reach the Champions League final for the first time in 19 years as PSG clinched a tense 2-1 win at Parc des Princes. Trailing 1-0 from last week’s first leg in London, the Gunners made a blistering start to the second leg, but could not convert their chances as Gianluigi Donnarumma’s superb saves inspired PSG’s 3-1 aggregate victory. Arsenal were punished for
Taiwanese e-sports veteran Lin “ET” Chia-hung yesterday successfully defended his King of Fighters XV title at this year’s Evolution Championship Series: Japan (EVO Japan), securing his second consecutive championship. Lin claimed victory with a 3-1 win over Japanese pro gamer “mok” in the grand final, repeating his earlier 3-1 win against the same opponent in the winners’ final. The 40-year-old earned a ￥1 million (US$6,897) cash prize at the two-day tournament, which drew 294 competitors. Mok, Lin’s toughest rival in the bracket, took home ￥400,000 as runner-up. Lin remains undefeated in match sets against mok in King of Fighters XV, holding a 10-0 record,
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