■ ENGLAND
Juve down the Gunners
A first-half David Trezeguet goal gave Juventus a 1-0 victory over hosts Arsenal in the pre-season Emirates Cup tournament in London on Saturday. French forward Trezeguet struck from what looked like an offside position after 38 minutes, stretching out a leg to deflect Vincenzo Iaquinta’s free-kick past Arsenal goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski. Real Madrid defeated Hamburg SV 2-1 earlier in the day thanks to a late goal from teenager Daniel Parejo. Parejo, a Spanish under-19 international, headed the winner five minutes from time after Hamburg’s Egyptian forward Mohamed Zidan had earlier canceled out Ruud van Nistelrooy’s first-half goal with a fine dipping shot nine minutes after the break. Hamburg’s Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart did not appear amid media speculation he was on the verge of a transfer to the Spanish champions.
■ GERMANY
Stuttgart reject Gomez offer
VfB Stuttgart confirmed on Saturday that they had turned down a Bundesliga-record 25 million euro (US$40 million) transfer bid from Bayern Munich to sign Germany striker Mario Gomez. That would have been the most expensive transfer between two Bundesliga sides and matched the record for signing a player outside the German league. Bayern paid that amount last year to French club Marseille for Franck Ribery, as did Borussia Dortmund to Serie A team Parma for Marcio Amoroso in 2001. Bayern manager Uli Hoeness said the club would make another offer for Gomez next year. “We didn’t want any team’s money,” Stuttgart manager Horst Heldt said. “We wanted to keep Germany’s player of the year.”
■ FRANCE
Bordeaux win Trophy
French league runners-up Bordeaux on Saturday ousted champions Lyon to win the Champions Trophy traditional curtain-raiser 5-4 on penalties after a goalless draw over 90 minutes. Souleymane Diawara converted the winning spot kick at Bordeaux’s Stade Chaban-Delmas venue to thrill a 30,000 home crowd after Brazilian Cris had missed for Lyon, who this season will target an eighth straight league title. Normally, the champions and French Cup winners compete for the Trophy, but the French league invited Bordeaux to face Lyon as the latter won both the championship and the Cup last season.
■ MALAYSIA
Foreigners get the boot
Foreign players are to be booted out out of the domestic league next season to save cash and develop Malaysia’s flagging national game. Soccer federation chiefs meeting at the weekend unanimously agreed that clubs’ reliance on highly paid foreign imports was shutting out local talent and weakening the national team. “We are not at the status of English Premier League, our league is not matured yet, therefore some drastic measures must be taken to improve it,” federation deputy president Khairy Jamaluddin told local reporters.
■ GREECE
Seven injured after violence
At least seven people were injured on Saturday when violence erupted in the stands during a pre-season friendly between Panserraikos and PAOK, forcing the match to be abandoned in the 15th minute. The clashes began when fans of both teams found themselves seated on the same terraces and spread as downtown businesses were damaged. None of the injuries were serious, with two people requiring hospital treatment, police said.
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
Rafael Nadal on Tuesday lost in straight sets to 31st-ranked Jiri Lehecka in the fourth round at the Madrid Open, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the semi-finals in the women’s doubles. Nadal said that he was feeling good about his progress following his latest injury layoff. Nadal called it a “positive week” in every way and said his body held up well. “I was able to play four matches, a couple of tough matches,” Nadal said. “So very positive, winning three matches, playing four matches at the high level of tennis. I enjoyed a lot playing at home. I leave here with
When 42-1 underdog James ‘Buster’ Douglas shocked ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson 34 years ago at the Tokyo Dome, the result reverberated worldwide. Spectators at the 45,000-plus seater venue witnessed one of boxing’s biggest upsets as unbeaten heavyweight champion Tyson was knocked out in the 10th round by the unheralded Douglas in February 1990. Boxing returns to the famous venue on Monday for the first time since that unforgettable encounter when Japan’s undisputed super-bantamweight world champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue puts his belts on the line against Mexican Luis Nery. The 31-year-old Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs) is a huge star in Japan and is just
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday came through “the most intense and crazy final” she has ever contested to avenge her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid Open final with a grueling three hour, 11 minute victory in the Spanish capital. Coming back from 1-3 down in the decider and saving three match points in total, Swiatek claimed a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) victory to secure the Madrid Open trophy for the first time. “Well, who is going to say now that women’s tennis is boring, right?” Swiatek said. Swiatek, who picked up the 20th title of her career, and ninth at