Radamel Falcao’s first goal in English soccer continued Manchester United’s recovery as they beat Everton 2-1 at Old Trafford to record their third successive home win.
Falcao had failed to score in his first three appearances following a loan move from AS Monaco, but came good with the second-half goal, which also gave United successive league wins for the first time under Louis van Gaal.
Everton, with only one league victory all season, missed a penalty and cancelled out Angel Di Maria’s early goal through the in-form Steven Naismith, but were denied any reward by Falcao and the brilliance of goalkeeper David De Gea as United edged toward the top four.
Before kick-off, ex-United midfielder and South Korean international Park Ji-sung was unveiled as a new club ambassador by Sir Alex Ferguson as the legendary former manager stepped back onto the Old Trafford pitch for the first time in a public capacity since his retirement speech last year.
It has been far from plain sailing since Ferguson stood down as United manager, but van Gaal avoided a fate that had befallen both Ferguson and his ill-fated successor David Moyes — namely losing to Everton in their first Premier League games at home to the Merseyside club.
There had been 21 years between those losses with Everton’s win in Manchester last season underlining Moyes’ struggles, which ushered in van Gaal’s arrival.
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