South Korea international midfielder Koo Ja-cheol netted on Sunday to help Bundesliga strugglers Augsburg pick up only their second league win of the season with a 3-2 victory at Fortuna Duesseldorf.
Koo gave Augsburg a 2-0 lead at the break when he scored from a tight angle on the stroke of halftime by firing across Fortuna’s luckless goalkeeper Fabian Giefer to claim his third goal of the season.
The goalkeeper was twice exposed as he first allowed Augsburg striker Sascha Moelders a simple tap in after the ball rolled through his legs on 40 minutes.
Moelders then charged down Giefer’s 71st-minute clearance, which flew into the Fortuna net to make it 3-0 to the guests.
Robbie Kruse helped pull a goal back for Fortuna when his 73rd-minute pass was converted by striker Stefan Reisinger, who then netted a second on 91 minutes to set up a tense finale.
Just before the final whistle, referee Manuel Graefe disallowed a second Reisinger goal, which would have made it 3-3, after calling a foul against Fortuna replacement striker Dani Schahin, much to the fury of coach Norbert Meier.
“I don’t know what the referee saw before the third goal, for me it was no foul, but we can’t blame the referee for the defeat,” Meier said. “There shouldn’t be excessive criticism of Giefer, he’s rescued us in previous games.”
Despite the points, Augsburg stay second from bottom, nine points from safety, while Fortuna are 14th.
Earlier, Hamburg SV were held to a 1-1 draw at Nuremberg as Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart made his first appearance since November.
Former Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur star Van der Vaart, 29, has endured a difficult few months after tearing his hamstring in November, then injuring his thigh, but he looked sharp playing behind the strikers.
Hamburg took the lead on 70 minutes when Latvia international striker Artjoms Rudnevs headed home, only for Czech Republic international striker Tomas Pekhart to level for the hosts five minutes later.
The point moves Hamburg up to ninth, while Nuremberg, whose coach Michael Wiesinger was taking charge of his first Bundesliga match, are 15th.
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
Forget Real Madrid, Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain, the world’s best soccer team — statistically speaking — might be a little-known outfit from the closed central Asian nation of Turkmenistan. Founded last year, Arkadag, named in honor of former Turkmen president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, have been unstoppable, notching up 36 consecutive domestic victories in a run still ongoing. The side have not lost a single competitive match and swept to a league and cup double in their inaugural season — success unthinkable almost anywhere else. However, in Turkmenistan, it could hardly have gone any other way. The energy-rich country is one of the most closed
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