ENGLAND
Arsenal lose Song to Barca
Arsenal midfielder Alex Song is the latest star player to leave the Emirates Stadium after Barcelona agreed a deal to sign the Cameroon star on Saturday. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has already lost striker Robin van Persie to Manchester United and Arsenal’s hopes of a successful campaign suffered another blow with Barca luring Song to the Camp Nou. The north London club, without a trophy for seven years, confirmed they had accepted Barca’s offer for Song just minutes after Saturday’s 0-0 draw against Sunderland. “Arsenal Football Club can confirm that terms have been agreed for the transfer of Alex Song to Barcelona,” an Arsenal statement read. Barca then revealed they had agreed to pay £15 million (US$23.5 million) for Song, who will have a release clause of 80 million euros (US$98.6 million) inserted in his contract.
GERMANY
Berliner stun Hoffenheim
Fourth-tier side Berliner AK 07 produced the shock of the German Cup first round on Saturday with a 4-0 home victory over Bundesliga club TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, while holders Borussia Dortmund began their defense of the competition with a straightforward 3-0 win at fourth-tier side Oberneuland. Berliner played with a zip and purpose that caught their visitors, 11th in the Bundesliga last season, off guard. Metin Cakmak opened the scoring after two minutes following a mixup in the Hoffenheim defense, with Justin Gerlach finishing off a neat counterattacking move to double the lead just past the half-hour mark. Kevin Kruschke made it 3-0 before halftime, with Cakmak getting his second, and Berliner’s fourth, early in the second half. Dortmund took the lead after 10 minutes with a Marco Reus goal, before Jakub Blaszczykowski doubled their advantage and Ivan Perisic grabbed a third late in the second half. Top-tier clubs Bayer 04 Leverkusen (4-0 at Carl Zeiss Jena), SC Freiburg (2-1 at Viktoria Hamburg), VfB Stuttgart (5-0 at SV Falkensee-Finkenkrug) and Borussia Moenchengladbach (2-0 at Alemannia Aachen) all made it through without too many problems.
RUSSIA
Spartak rally to go second
Nine-time champions Spartak Moscow battled back from a goal down to beat Rubin Kazan 2-1 on Saturday and move into second place in the first division. Brazilian midfielder Borges Romulo and Dmitry Kombarov scored for Spartak after Israeli star Bebars Natcho had put Rubin in front. “It was a difficult match,” Spartak coach Unai Emery said. “We started well, but later lost the initiative and allowed Rubin to score. Luckily, our substitutes strengthened our play and we managed to grab the initiative back and win.” Lokomotiv Moscow went third with a 2-0 win over Volga at Nizhny Novgorod. Lokomotiv substitute Felipe Caicedo scored with a header and Denis Glushakov added the second with four minutes to go.
SCOTLAND
Rangers fans beat record
Rangers manager Ally McCoist paid tribute to the troubled club’s fans after 49,118 packed into Ibrox to watch Saturday’s 5-1 thrashing of East Stirling, a world-record attendance for fourth tier soccer. “It was quite unbelievable really,” McCoist said. “It was fantastic. It’s a statement and it’s really encouraging. When you’re getting support like that from the fans, you can only go one way and we must go forward.” Rangers smashed the previous record crowd at that level — set in 1961 when 37,774 watched Crystal Palace’s English fourth-tier clash against south London rivals Millwall.
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
The sacred flame for the Paris Olympics was lit yesterday in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the ancient Games, in a ceremony inspired by antiquity and marked by messages of hope amid multiple global crises. “In ancient times, the Olympic Games brought together the Greek city states, even — and in particular — during times of war and conflict,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said. “Today, the Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. Then as now, the Olympic athletes are sending this powerful message — yes, it is possible to compete fiercely