Substitute Frederic Kanoute headed the winner for Sevilla who overcame a resurgent Villarreal 3-2 to keep themselves in touch with Barcelona at the top of La Liga on Sunday.
Villarreal proved tough competition though and responded to Luis Fabiano’s opener after nine minutes with goals from Robert Pires and David Fuster. Fabiano equalized almost immediately and then Kanoute, still not fully fit and starting the game on the bench, scored a crucial winner to maintain the four-point distance from the champions.
Sevilla coach Manolo Jimenez felt his players were not as sharp as they should have been after playing in the Champions League in midweek.
PHOTO: AFP
“We can have no excuses about playing in three competitions and it is now that we have to show how strong we are. We need to be able to change the chip quickly and be concentrated,” Jimenez said.
Valencia’s star-studded strike force were responsible for a 3-1 victory over Real Zaragoza.
Juan Mata put Valencia ahead after 17 minutes, with David Villa and Pablo Hernandez also adding to the lead before halftime.
In the second half, Valencia had further chances, but the only goal came from Zaragoza midfielder Abel Aguilar.
The victory leaves Valencia in fourth place, five points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona.
Sporting Gijon have their eyes set on a place in Europe after beating Espanyol 1-0 thanks to an early goal from Mate Bilic.
Espanyol traveled to Gijon on the back of a seven-match unbeaten run, but they conceded after just three minutes, with Bilic deflecting in a Diego Castro shot.
Athletic Bilbao beat Racing Santander 2-0 to condemn the home side to their third consecutive defeat. Racing showed the greater desire and were controlling the midfield through Jose Moraton and Mehdi Lacen, but they lacked a cutting edge.
When Carlos Gurpegui headed home against the run of play, Racing’s confidence evaporated and they struggled to battle back. The win was assured when Andoni Iraola converted a spot-kick.
Spanish La Liga
Team | P | GD | PTS | |
1 | Barcelona | 10 | 21 | 26 |
2 | Real Madrid | 10 | 18 | 25 |
3 | Sevilla | 10 | 12 | 22 |
4 | Valencia | 10 | 9 | 21 |
5 | Deportivo La Coruna | 10 | 3 | 19 |
6 | Real Mallorca | 10 | 5 | 17 |
7 | Sporting Gijon | 10 | 2 | 16 |
8 | Athletic Bilbao | 10 | -2 | 16 |
9 | Espanyol | 10 | -2 | 13 |
10 | Osasuna | 10 | -1 | 12 |
11 | Almeria | 10 | -2 | 12 |
12 | Getafe | 10 | -4 | 12 |
13 | Real Zaragoza | 10 | -7 | 11 |
14 | Valladolid | 10 | -3 | 10 |
15 | Tenerife | 10 | -12 | 10 |
16 | Villarreal | 10 | 0 | 9 |
17 | Racing Santander | 10 | -9 | 7 |
18 | Atletico Madrid | 10 | -10 | 7 |
19 | Xerez | 10 | -13 | 6 |
20 | Malaga | 10 | -5 | 5 |
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and