■ SPAIN
Sevilla, Osasuna advance
Luis Fabiano’s hat trick helped Sevilla to a 4-0 win over Ponferradina and Walter Pandiani’s goal helped Osasuna beat Getafe 1-0 on Thursday in the Copa del Rey. Ponferradina, a third-division club, brought a 1-0 first-leg lead, but Fabiano evened the tie in the 29th minute after heading Ndri Romaric’s cross beyond goalkeeper Alejandro Garcia. Jesus Nava headed the Brazil international into the clear in the 49th for him to coolly chip over Garcia for a second. Fabiano ensured the Cup holders progression to the last 16 in the 67th after scoring from a low volley. Sevilla capped the 4-1 aggregate through Enza Maresca in injury time. Getafe goalkeeper Jacobo Sanz was at fault in the 32nd minute after delivering a lazy pass straight to Pandiani. The Italian striker managed to rush the net and score over Jacobo for coach Jose Antonio Camacho’s first victory and the Basque club’s first goal in 437 minutes.
■ SPAIN
Basques threaten boycott
Basque players may boycott a friendly against Iran next month because of a dispute over the team name for the Spanish region’s representative side. One hundred and sixty-five current and former Basque players said in a statement on Thursday that they will not be available for the Dec. 23 match if the Basque soccer federation returns to calling the team Euskadi instead of Euskadi Herria. The federation changed the name to Euskadi Herria last July at the urging of the players, who felt it was a better overall reference to the players’ origins. The Basque Country had been referred to as Euskadi since 1990. Twenty-seven players from Basque club Athletic Bilbao and others from a variety of clubs ranging from Real Sociedad to Panathinaikos signed the letter. Like other Spanish regions, players native to the Basque Country occasionally gather to compete in friendlies against international teams.
■ SPAIN
Club may sue Brit plumber
Real Mallorca were examining legal options after a potential British buyer reneged on a deal to purchase the Spanish club on Thursday. President Vicente Grande said Mallorca would “always defend its interests” after Paul Davidson pulled out of a reported 38 million euro (US$49 million) deal. “It’s not good that the club is on sale for so long,” Grande said on the club’s Web site. Mallorca have been hit by financial instability with reported liabilities of 830 million euros. Grande said the club, who are 11th in the league table, would not be affected by the fallout. “Mallorca is in good economic shape,” Grande said. David, who heads a British-based pipefitting company Fluid Leader Group Plc, was set to purchase a 91 percent share.
■ ENGLAND
Capello bans ketchup
England coach Fabio Capello told his players to stop eating fried food and ketchup as part of his efforts to lift the team following its failure to qualify for the European Championship. Capello has taken England to the top of its qualifying group for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, with some of the improvement apparently due to an improvement in diet and discipline. “I have, for example, impressed upon them the advantages of a Mediterranean diet over ketchup and chips [french fries],” Capello said in an interview with FIFA Magazine. “I have also put some rules of conduct in place for when the national team meets up, from eating breakfast together to the use of mobile phones, which must be switched off from time to time,” he said.
■ BOXING
Valuev to take on Holyfield
World heavyweight champion Nikolai Valuev will defend his WBA title against ex-champ Evander Holyfield in Zurich on Dec. 20, Valuev’s promoter announced on Thursday. The 35-year-old, 2.15m Russian is confident of victory over 46-year-old American Holyfield, who will be bidding to become world champion for the fifth time. “Holyfield was a great champion,” said Valuev, who is managed by German promoters Sauerland. “He is very experienced, but I have no doubts that I will beat him. I take this fight very seriously.” The clash will take place in Zurich’s Hallenstadion, where Muhammad Ali stopped German heavyweight Jurgen Blin in the seventh round of their meeting in 1971. Four-time heavyweight champion Holyfield boasts a record of 42 wins and 27 KOs with nine defeats — four of which have come in the last six years — while Valuev has 49 wins and 34 KOs with one defeat.
■ SAILING
Fourth skipper quits Vendee
Alex Thomson became the fourth skipper to abandon the Vendee Globe solo around-the-world yacht race when he decided on Thursday that repairs would take too long. Thomson had turned his Hugo Boss yacht back to Les Sables d’Olonne on the west coast of France after a crack to the port side hull caused flooding. He hoped to continue, but inspections showed he would not be ready to sail out again by Wednesday’s restart deadline. “Repairs would take weeks rather than days,” Thomson said. “I am gutted, absolutely gutted. To have put everything into this for the last four years, and battling to get away like we had to do, this just feels so unjust.” French skippers Yannick Bestaven, Marc Thiercelin and Kito de Pavant also quit after losing their masts in rough seas. Lorick Peyron has a narrow lead over French rivals Sebastien Josse and Jean-Pierre Dick.
■ BASKETBALL
NBA fines Theus US$25,000
The NBA fined Sacramento Kings coach Reggie Theus US$25,000 on Thursday for criticizing officials following a loss to the Detroit Pistons. The league also penalized the Kings US$25,000 for Theus’ actions. Theus said it was “ridiculous” that the Pistons took 36 foul shots to just 17 for the Kings in Detroit’s 100-92 victory in Sacramento on Tuesday.
■ BASKETBALL
Bulls sign Lindsey Hunter
The injury-depleted Chicago Bulls signed veteran point guard Lindsey Hunter, who was expected to join the team for the game on Thursday against the Dallas Mavericks. With a Bulls backcourt thinned by injuries, the 37-year-old Hunter brings 15 years of experience to the team. He played 24 games for Detroit last season. Guard Kirk Hinrich could be out for three months after thumb surgery, and Larry Hughes hasn’t played this season because of a preseason shoulder injury.
■ BASEBALL
Yankees, Marte clinch deal
Left-hander Damaso Marte is remaining with the New York Yankees after agreeing to a US$12 million, three-year contract that includes a club option for 2012. New York last week declined a US$6 million option on the 33-year-old reliever, choosing to pay a US$250,000 buyout. Marte was acquired with outfielder Xavier Nady from Pittsburgh on July 26 for pitchers Ross Ohlendorf, Jeff Karstens and Daniel McCutchen and outfielder Jose Tabata. Marte went 1-3 with a 5.40 ERA in 25 games for the Yankees and 5-3 with a 4.02 ERA overall.
Yu Yao-hsing on Tuesday nabbed Taiwan’s only goal in the final round of qualifiers for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, as they fell 3-1 to Sri Lanka at Taipei Municipal Stadium. Early goals from Sri Lanka in the first half left Taiwan struggling to get on the board, and Christopher Tiao’s own goal at 53 minutes sealed the team’s fate in the third round of qualifiers. While acknowledging that the defeat, Taiwan’s sixth in Group D, was disappointing, head coach Matt Ross said he saw reasons to stay positive about the team’s development. “There were lots of positive signs in terms of the
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
INDIGESTION: Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for a third consecutive time after a 4-1 defeat to Bosnia on penalties in a loss Gattuso said was ‘difficult to digest’ Coach Graham Arnold on Tuesday challenged his players to “shock the world” after Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup with a nerve-shredding 2-1 win over Bolivia in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico, as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Sweden and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) also secured their places at the finals. Iraq, whose preparations were disrupted by the war in the Middle East, sealed their first appearance at the finals in 40 years and are to play in Group I against France, Senegal and Norway. Goals from Ali al-Hamadi
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
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