Valencia dropped more points in their pursuit of a UEFA Champions League place with a Dani Parejo free-kick rescuing a 1-1 draw at Rayo Vallecano de Madrid as both sides finished with 10 men after a stormy La Liga clash on Thursday.
Fourth-placed Valencia, who have just two wins from their past six games, have 69 points, the same as Sevilla, who are fifth, while Atletico Madrid, in third, have 75.
“It is not a case of saying goodbye to anything, not even to catching Atletico. We will fight until the end,” Valencia coach Nuno Espirito Santo told reporters. “It is still in our hands, our next game is at home [against Sociedad Deportiva Eibar] and we need to win that. There are four games to go and we will approach them with the belief that we will win.”
Photo: AFP
Rayo took the lead after 19 minutes when Valencia goalkeeper Diego Alves flapped at a tame long-range shot by Adrian Embarba and the ball ended up in the back of the net.
The hosts played their typical attacking game and there were openings at either end, but Valencia lacked a finishing touch.
Alvaro Negredo returned to the starting lineup after six games on the bench, but was unable to provide inspiration.
Instead it was Parejo, having hit the post with a long-range drive early on, who brought Valencia level with a free-kick from the edge of the penalty area after 66 minutes, although there was plenty of controversy in the buildup.
Jorge Morcillo upended Andre Gomes and was red-carded as last man, but Negredo, who appeared to be interfering with play as he shielded the ball from a defender without touching it, was in an offside position.
The decision led to tempers rising and Valencia’s Rodrigo Moreno was dismissed for tripping goalkeeper Tono Rodriguez in the 77th minute, while Rayo coach Paco Jemez was also sent to the stands for complaining.
With four games left, Barcelona lead the standings on 84 points, with Real Madrid two points behind.
Elsewhere, a Francisco Montanes strike for RCD Espanyol sent relegation-threatened Granada to a 2-1 defeat.
A Diego Mainz header brought Andalusian side Granada level after 73 minutes following Sergio Garcia’s opener, but Montanes fired home six minutes from the end to give Espanyol the victory.
Granada are second from bottom on 25 points, six points from safety.
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