SOCCER
Portugal advance 3-1
On a night when Portugal unveiled its newest star, it was the same old Cristiano Ronaldo who came through for the national team again. Teenager Joao Felix, who has been called Ronaldo’s successor, made his international debut on Wednesday, but it was Ronaldo who scored the hat-trick that gave Portugal a 3-1 win over Switzerland and a spot in the final of the inaugural Nations League. “Clearly these were three very important goals, beautiful goals, but the most important is that we won and that the team have qualified for the final, which was our objective,” Ronaldo said.
SOCCER
FA criticizes unruly fans
The Football Association (FA) has labeled troublemaking fans at the Nations League in Portugal “an embarrassment” after they clashed with police on Wednesday night. Riot police charged England fans in the center of Porto after beer glasses were thrown in the special fanzone set up for the Nations League finals. “The FA strongly condemns the scenes witnessed in Porto overnight. Anyone responsible for these disturbances cannot be seen as true England supporters and are not welcome in football,” it said in a statement. “They are an embarrassment to the team and the thousands of well-behaved fans who follow England in the right way. We are liaising with the UK Football Policing Unit.” England supporters were staying in Porto ahead of yesterday’s match in nearby Guimaraes against the Netherlands and had gathered in the fanzone to watch Wednesday’s match between Portugal and Switzerland on outdoor big screens. The Guardian newspaper reported that hundreds of England fans were baton charged by riot police after they threw beer glasses. Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the National Police Chiefs’ Council soccer policing lead, said in a statement that the behavior was “incredibly disappointing” and “completely unacceptable.”
OLYMPICS
USOC seeks pregnancy rule
The US Olympic Committee (USOC) says it is working on reforms to prevent athletes from losing health insurance coverage when they become pregnant. Three US senators on Wednesday wrote to USOC chief executive officer Sarah Hirshland, asking her to provide details about the insurance program, saying the discontinuation of coverage when an athlete becomes pregnant is “unconscionable and may put at risk her health and that of her child.” The USOC provides funding for insurance to US governing bodies that run individual sports, and those bodies are responsible for determining which athletes receive coverage and under what conditions.
RUGBY UNION
Folau starts legal action
Sacked Wallabies star Israel Folau yesterday began legal action against Rugby Australia’s decision to dismiss him over social media posts, saying the move was to defend freedom of religion. “No Australian of any faith should be fired for practising their religion,” Folau said in a statement after filing his case with Australia’s employment watchdog, the Fair Workplace Commission. Folau had his contract terminated last month after a Rugby Australia tribunal found him guilty of a “high-level” breach of the governing body’s code of conduct for a post on Instagram that said “hell awaits” sinners.
The pressure was already on Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso before their 2-1 defeat to Manchester City on Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League raised further questions about his future. Arsenal remain perfect in this season’s competition and three points clear at the top of the standings after a 3-0 win against Club Brugge, while defending champions Paris Saint-Germain were held 0-0 at Athletic Bilbao. The clash between Madrid and City was the standout game of the round amid reports this week that Alonso had lost control of the locker room. Speculation over his position is likely to intensify after the latest
‘HIGH STANDARD’: The Thunder are on track for a Finals-Cup double after they scored 22 three-pointers in equaling the best 25-game start to a season in NBA history The Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday bagged a 16th straight victory, thrashing the Phoenix Suns 138-89 to romp into an NBA Cup semi-final clash with the San Antonio Spurs, who stunned the Los Angeles Lakers 132-119. NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 28 points to lead the reigning NBA champions Thunder, who improved to 24-1 to equal the best 25-game start to a season in league history. They dominated from start to finish to book their place in the final four of the in-season tournament in Las Vegas, where they are tomorrow to take on the Spurs. The New York Knicks and
Italian Luca de Aliprandini described Saturday’s World Cup giant slalom at Val d’Isere as the hardest race of his life, coming two days after his Swiss partner Michelle Gisin suffered a heavy fall in training which required neck surgery. De Aliprandini finished 26th in the men’s event won by Loic Meillard, but the result paled into insignificance with two-time Olympic ski champion Gisin in hospital with injuries to her wrist, knee and cervical spine (neck). “It was Michelle’s wish that I race here. I couldn’t say no to her, but it was the toughest race of my entire life,” an emotional De
TOP OF THE TABLE: Evann Guessand put the visitors ahead early in the game and Flavius Daniliuc equalized before Youri Tielemans got the winner in the second half Aston Villa on Thursday extended their winning streak to eight games in all competitions with a 2-1 victory against Basel in the UEFA Europa League to secure at least a playoff spot. Villa were tied with Olympique Lyonnais, who beat Go Ahead Eagles 2-1, and Midtjylland, 1-0 winners over Genk, atop the standings of the second-tier European competition on 15 points with five wins from six games. They have bounced back from a poor start to the season and are third in the Premier League, including a 2-1 victory over leaders Arsenal on Saturday. At St Jakob-Park in Basel, summer signing Evann Guessand
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