■ Brazil
Romario reaches 998 goals
Former Brazil striker Romario took his career tally, according to his own records, to 998 goals on Saturday after scoring his third hat-trick of the year. Romario's goals came in a 20-minute spell in the second half as he helped Vasco da Gama beat modest opponents Boavista 6-2 in the Carioca (Rio de Janeiro state) championship. The irrepressible 41-year-old former Barcelona and PSV Eindhoven player scored with a header, a penalty and a left-foot shot to drag Vasco from 2-1 down to 4-2 ahead. "A few years ago, everybody thought my career was finished," Brazil's 1994 World Cup winner told reporters. "But there's the reply."
■ France
Lyon rout Nancy
Milan Baros, Kim Kallstrom and Fred each scored on Saturday to give Lyon a 3-0 win at Nancy and move the five-time defending champion 16 points clear at the top of the French league. Lyon has 65 points from 29 rounds. Czech Republic striker Baros gave Lyon the lead in the 36th minute when the ball bounced off his thigh after a corner. Kallstrom made it 2-0 in the 76th with a powerful shot off a pass from forward Karim Benzema, and substitute Fred sealed victory in the 81st with a diving header from Kallstrom's free kick. Bordeaux moved up to third place with 44 points after drawing 1-1 at last-place Sedan.
■ Australia
Players threaten boycott
Some of Australia's top players are reportedly considering boycotting international friendlies against Argentina and Uruguay because they are unhappy at the timing of the matches. Australia are due to play Uruguay in Sydney on June 2 and Argentina in Melbourne four days later as part of their preparations for the Asian Cup, to be staged in Southeast Asia in July. Several senior players, including captain Mark Viduka, wanted the matches played later so they could have a break after the end of their European club seasons. "You need a rest and after our schedule over the past few years, it's a bit too much," Viduka told Sydney's Sunday Telegraph.
■ Italy
Palermo, Sampdoria draw
Palermo drew 1-1 with 10-man Sampdoria on Saturday to drop points for the seventh straight game in the Serie A. Striker Edison Cavani headed Palermo in front in the 53rd minute before a defensive mix-up allowed Sampdoria forward Fabio Quagliarella to level the match in the 56th. Palermo was unable to profit more from defender Giulio Falcone's expulsion in the 36th and remained winless since Feb. 2. It was Sampdoria's second straight draw. The Sicilian team took sole possession of third place in the Serie A with 47 points -- one more than Lazio, which hosted fifth-place Empoli yesterday. Sampdoria is eighth with 35 points.
■ England
Hands off, Ferguson says
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has accused Real Madrid and Barcelona of using winger Cristiano Ronaldo as a bargaining tool in their internal politics. The two Spanish giants have been linked with a move for the Portuguese international but Ferguson believes part of the speculation is fired by propaganda in the presidency battles at Real and Barcelona. "Let's be perfectly clear about Real Madrid and Barcelona," Ferguson told reporters. "Their elections are in the summer."
Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke, 29, has died, the NBA team said in a statement on Tuesday, while the family of Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to play in a major US pro sports league, announced the former Grizzlies and Brooklyn Nets player had died after a battle with brain cancer. “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of Brandon Clarke,” the Grizzlies said in a statement posted on social media. “Brandon was an outstanding teammate and an even better person whose impact on the organization and the greater Memphis community will not be forgotten.” The statement did not provide
Taiwan’s top male badminton player, Chou Tien-chen, on Saturday bowed out in the men’s singles semi-finals at the Thailand Open after losing in straight games to Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn. The world No. 6 Chou, seeded fourth at the Super 500 tournament, lost to the world No. 2 Thai 21-7, 21-19 in 53 minutes. The victory improved Vitidsarn’s head-to-head record against Chou to 3-5. Chou, 36, trailed throughout the opening game after the score was tied 2-2. His relatively passive approach allowed the 25-year-old Thai to capitalize on Chou’s defensive clears with powerful smashes while committing few unforced errors. The Taiwanese
FRUSTRATION: Gauff smacked herself on the head with her racket before storming down the tunnel, emerging afterward to have a heated discussion with her coach Elina Svitolina on Saturday won the Italian Open after beating Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-7 (3/7), 6-2 to claim her third Rome title, while Jannik Sinner set a date with Casper Ruud in the men’s final. Ukraine’s Svitolina had not claimed a WTA 1000 title since her last victory at the Foro Italico eight years ago, but prevailed over the ever-erratic Gauff to claim her 20th tournament triumph. Saturday’s win over Gauff was her third in a row against a player in the top four of the world rankings — including Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina — ahead of the French
West Ham United’s 3-1 defeat at Newcastle United on Sunday left Tottenham Hotspur realistically only needing one more point to win the battle for English Premier League survival, while Bruno Fernandes made history in Manchester United’s 3-2 win over Nottingham Forest. Spurs can avoid dropping out of the English top flight for the first time in nearly 50 years with victory at Chelsea today, but a draw would also likely suffice thanks to their much superior goal-difference over West Ham. “Overall bad performance. Too many things [went wrong], I think we gifted them the goals,” West Ham head caoch Nuno Espirito Santo
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