■UNITED STATES
Beckham fined US$1,000
Los Angeles Galaxy’s David Beckham was slapped with a US$1,000 fine on Friday for provoking his own team’s fans during the Galaxy’s 2-2 draw with AC Milan at the Home Depot Center. Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber fined the Galaxy midfielder for his part in an ugly halftime scene, where he allegedly challenged abusive Los Angeles fans to come down onto the field. “We support our players interacting with fans, whether it is at clinics, charity events or by high-fiving their supporters in the stands while celebrating a goal,” Garber said. “However, our players should never engage in conduct that can be interpreted as encouraging fans to come out of the stands and onto the field, regardless of the reason.” Video footage of the incident at last Sunday’s exhibition game also apparently shows Beckham trying to climb over a sideline railing before being stopped by security guards. Police arrested a fan who left the stands to meet Beckham’s alleged challenge.
■ENGLAND
Benitez talks with Alonso
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez said yesterday that he had spoken to Real Madrid target Xabi Alonso and urged him to stay at Anfield, telling his fellow Spaniard that the fans loved him. The unsettled Alonso has been tipped to join new signings Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka at the Bernabeu, with Spanish media suggesting the move was imminent. Alonso has avoided questions on the subject during the team’s pre-season tour of Asia and on Friday he held talks with Benitez, who sounded upbeat yesterday. “I talked to Xabi yesterday and told him, as he can see here, that the fans love him and said to him: ‘Maybe you have to stay,’” Benitez said.
■SPAIN
Ibrahimovic deal imminent
The transfer of Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Inter to Barcelona is expected to be completed tomorrow, Camp Nou official Txiki Begiristain said on Friday. “There is agreement in principle between Inter and the player, and the documents are being prepared at the moment,” he said on the Spanish club’s Web TV channel. “The club will do all it can to conclude the agreement quickly and to present the player as soon as possible. It might be on Monday,” he said. Ibrahimovic has left the club’s pre-season training camp in the US and returned to his native Sweden. The complex deal between the Italian and Spanish clubs will also see Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o switch from Barcelona and Belarusian winger Alexander Hleb go on loan to the San Siro.
■UNITED STATES
Zhirkov nets the winner
New signing Yuri Zhirkov smashed a 69th-minute winner from 20m to give Chelsea a 2-1 victory over their manager Carlo Ancelotti’s former club AC Milan in a friendly on Friday. Didier Drogba also scored for Chelsea, while Clarence Seedorf scored for Milan in the friendly match in front of a sell-out crowd of 71,203 at the home of the Baltimore Ravens. “We have to improve, we have to work, the victory is important because the atmosphere is good in the team and for this we are happy,” Ancelotti said.
■ENGLAND
Black Cats sign Cana
Sunderland on Friday signed Albanian international Lorik Cana from French giants Marseille on a four-year contract in a deal worth more than £5 million (US$8.2 million). The midfielder is Sunderland boss Steve Bruce’s third signing of the summer, following the arrivals of Paraguay skipper Paulo Da Silva and England under-21 striker Fraizer Campbell.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
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
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