■SOCCER
N’Zogbia in row with Kinnear
Charles N’Zogbia said on Thursday he would never play for Newcastle United again while Joe Kinnear remains manager, accusing him of insulting him by apparently forgetting his name in a television interview. “First of all, I wish to apologize to the fans for wanting to leave the club,” the 22-year-old Frenchman said in a statement. “However, having been insulted by Joe Kinnear, I will never play for him again while he remains Newcastle manager. The club are aware that there are offers on the table for me and they should accept one of them.” The Times reported that the row blew up after Kinnear appeared to forget N’Zogbia’s surname during a television interview on Wednesday night, twice calling him “Insomnia” before finally settling for “Charlie.” But the Magpies manager hit back, accusing N’Zogbia of trying to force Newcastle into allowing him to leave St James’ Park. “OK, I got a little tongue-tied — but if I had a pound for every time I’ve mispronounced a player’s name down the years, then I’d be a very wealthy man indeed,” the Times reported Kinnear as saying. “There have already been plenty of quotes attributed to Charles during January, saying he is interested in leaving for other clubs. But the truth is we haven’t received a formal offer for him. Sadly, this just smacks of a desperate attempt to engineer a move away from Newcastle United,” Kinnear said.
■BASEBALL
Bobby Estalella to testify
ESPN.com reported on Thursday that former major league catcher Bobby Estalella has been subpoenaed by federal prosecutors to testify at Barry Bonds’ trial. Estalella, who was on the San Francisco Giants with Bonds in 2000 and 2001, was expected to testify to firsthand knowledge that Bonds used steroids, the Web site said, citing an unidentified source with knowledge of the evidence. The Web site attributed knowledge of the subpoenas to two unidentified sources. Estalella testified before a federal grand jury in November 2003. He admitted that he used performance-enhancing drugs, the San Francisco Chronicle reported in December 2004. The book Game of Shadows, by two Chronicle reporters, says Estalella received a drug schedule from Greg Anderson, Bonds’ trainer, advising him to use human growth hormone, the steroids “the cream” and “the clear,” and the female fertility drug Clomid.
■BOXING
Pacman thief arraigned
A woman accused of stealing more than US$89,000 from Filipino star Manny Pacquiao has been charged with grand theft and forgery. Pia Anatalia Quijada, 27, was arraigned on Wednesday and was being held on US$90,000 bail, the district attorney’s office said in a statement. Investigators say Quijada forged 32 checks over the past year and pocketed the money. A public defender entered a not guilty plea on her behalf. Pacquiao, who earned at least US$11 million for beating Oscar De La Hoya, knew Quijada because she was married to the boxer’s driver.
■FREESTYLE SKIING
Kearney wins the moguls
Hannah Kearney of the US won the moguls to lead the freestyle World Cup moguls standings on Thursday. Guilbaut Colas of France won the men’s moguls, edging World Cup leader Alexandre Bilodeau of Canada and Patrick Deneen of the US. Kearney took the moguls points lead when co-leader Jennifer Heil of Canada fell. Michelle Roark finished second, followed by Margarita Marbler.
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
Arne Slot has denied that Darwin Nunez was dropped from Liverpool’s win against West Ham because of a training-ground row with a member of his coaching staff. The Liverpool head coach on Sunday last week said that Nunez was absent from the 2-1 victory at Anfield, having felt unwell during training the day before, although the striker sat behind the substitutes throughout the game. Speculation has been rife that the Uruguay international, whom Slot criticized for his work rate against Wolves and Aston Villa in February, was left out for disciplinary reasons. Asked on Friday to clarify the situation, Slot said: “He
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