■ENGLAND
Peruvian star in rape probe
Peru midfielder Nolberto Solano has been arrested on suspicion of rape. Solano, who plays for second-tier English club Leicester, was released on police bail after being arrested at his house in Newcastle on Monday after an allegation was made by a 22-year-old woman. “Nobby [Solano] denies the allegations in full and is cooperating and assisting the police fully with their enquiries,” Leicester said in a statement. “Nobby is looking for a speedy solution and has the full support of Leicester City Football Club.” Solano became the first Peruvian to play in the Premier League when he joined Newcastle in 1998 from Boca Juniors.
■RUSSIA
Bozovic replaces Kobelev
Montenegro’s Miodrag Bozovic has replaced Andrei Kobelev as coach of Dynamo Moscow after signing a three-year contract, the Russian Premier League club said on Tuesday. Kobelev, 41, who had been the club’s coach since August 2006, was sacked earlier in the day following a string of poor results. Dynamo, Russia’s oldest club have targeted their first league title since 1976 following a disappointing eighth-place finish last year after spending heavily in the off season. They are 10th with just two wins from seven matches into the March-November season. Bozovic, also 41, had been out of work since his former club, FK Moscow, was liquidated before the start of this season after their main sponsor Norilsk Nickel withdrew its financing. In 2008, Bozovic led unfashionable Amkar Perm to a fourth-place finish and the Russian Cup final before being named FK Moscow coach.
■SPAIN
Kaka unhappy with form
Real Madrid’s Brazilian star Kaka said he was unhappy with his performances since arriving last summer, but blamed injuries for his lack of form. “I’m not happy with my performances, but it’s all physical. I suffered a lot since I got injured,” he said. “When I’m good physically, my performance will improve, I’ll be happy and the fans too,” he told a news conference on Tuesday. The midfielder has found goals hard to come by since arriving from AC Milan last summer and has been accused of failing to replicate the form that made him the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2007. But on Saturday, he ended a six-week injury absence by grabbing the winner for Real Madrid in a 2-1 victory over Zaragoza. He shrugged off whistles and jeers that were directed at him during Real’s defeat by Lyon in the last 16 of the Champions League on March 10.. “I have been whistled many times. They did it in Sao Paulo, Brazil, with Milan ... it happens to all players. The fans are very emotional. When things do not go well in a game, sometimes the players who are the most important to them, are criticized,” he said.
■FRANCE
PSG humbled by Grenoble
Paris Saint Germain suffered a 4-0 humiliation at already-relegated Grenoble on Tuesday four days before they turn out for the French Cup final. With Gregory Coupet back in goal for the first time since injury back in November, PSG tuned up for the Stade de France date with Monaco in the worst possible style. PSG were undone by goals from Laurent Batlees and Nicolas Dieuze in the first half, with Nassim Akrour and Daniel Ljuboja compounding their misery after the break. Monaco escaped with a come-from-behind 1-1 draw with visitors Le Mans.
Five-time champion Novak Djokovic on Saturday tumbled out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters, falling in his first match to lucky loser Botic van de Zandschulp as two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz advanced. “No excuses for a poor performance,” 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic said after 37 unforced errors in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 defeat. “It doesn’t feel great when you play this way on the court,” he said. “But congratulations to my opponent — just a bad day in the office, I guess, for me.” Djokovic is just the latest in Van de Zandschulp’s string of superstar victims. He
Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday held their nerve to beat Liverpool 4-1 on penalties and reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals after their tie finished one-apiece on aggregate, while Bayern Munich saw off Bayer 04 Leverkusen to complete a 5-0 win over both legs. Lamine Yamal and Raphinha fired Barcelona into the next round as the Catalans bested SL Benfica 3-1, and Inter booked a last-eight meeting with Bayern by seeing off Feyenoord 2-1. At Anfield, Ousmane Dembele netted the only goal of the night as PSG bounced back from Liverpool’s late winner last week to force the tie to extra-time and penalties. Maligned
Taiwanese badminton player Lin Chun-yi had to settle for silver in the men’s singles at the Orleans Masters in France on Sunday after losing in the final to his French opponent. The 25-year-old Lin, ranked world No. 14, lost to Alex Lanier 13-21, 18-21 in a match that lasted 42 minutes at the Palais des Sports arena. It was the first time that the two players were facing each other in their professional careers. In the opener, Lin was slow to warm up, which gave the 20-year-old Lanier an opportunity to take an early lead with seven consecutive points. Despite
Taiwan’s Lin Chun-yi on Wednesday inflicted a first-round defeat on former badminton world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen at the All England Open. Lin came out of top after a back-and-forth first game before Axelsen dominated the second, but the Dane was not able to keep that form in the decider as Lin reeled off six points in a row on the way to a 21-19, 13-21, 21-11 victory. “If I don’t play my best, everyone can win against me,” said Axelsen, the world No. 4. “Today’s opponent played a fantastic game; it was disappointing, but that is how it is.” “I just tried
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