■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.
Carlos Alcaraz on Monday powered into the French Open second round with a resounding win to start his title defense, while world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and three-time defending women’s champion Iga Swiatek also progressed at Roland Garros. Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz struck 31 winners in a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri and is to face Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan in round two. Alcaraz is now on an eight-match winning streak at the French Open and also took Olympic silver at Roland Garros last year, losing the final to Novak Djokovic. “The first round is never
SSC Napoli coach Antonio Conte has dragged the team back from disaster and restored them to the top of Italian Serie A, but his future at the Scudetto winners is in doubt even after a triumphant season. The fiery 55-year-old has exceeded preseason expectations and bolstered his reputation as a serial winner by guiding Napoli to their fourth Scudetto, and second in three seasons. However, he might well be on his way in the summer after just one season at the helm as his charged relationship with Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis has simmered throughout the campaign. Conte has said
‘HELLA ENERGY’: Minnesota’s 42-point victory set a club record for points in a playoff game, but the team have to keep up their momentum to stay in the series, Edwards said Anthony Edwards on Saturday night scored 30 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves overwhelmed Oklahoma City 143-101 to tighten their NBA playoff series. Edwards added nine rebounds and six assists. while shooting 12-of-17 from the floor and 5-of-8 from three-point range as the hosts Timberwolves pulled a game back to be 2-1 behind in the best-of-seven Western Conference Finals. However, moments after the 42-point win, Minnesota were determined to forget all about it. Such is life in the NBA playoffs. “You’ve got to erase this one,” Edwards said. “This one is over. I know everyone is happy about this one, but we know OKC is
The horn sounded on Wednesday night to signal a third straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final, as the Florida Panthers celebrated merely by hopping over the boards and several heading over to congratulate goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. It was a subdued celebration seemingly more befitting a regular-season win for the reigning Cup champs. “I remember a few years ago, it felt like such an accomplishment from where we were at one point,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said, adding: “It’s all business and we’ve got a bigger goal in mind.” The Panthers closed out the Carolina Hurricanes in five games, with a 5-3 victory in
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