Thiago Ribeiro’s first-half hat-trick guided Brazil’s Cruzeiro to a 3-1 first-leg win over Nacional of Uruguay in the Copa Libertadores round-of-16 on Thursday.
In other first-leg matches, Diego Rivarola’s late goal gave Universidad de Chile a 1-0 win at Peru’s Alianza Lima, while 2004 champions Once Caldas of Colombia drew 0-0 with Libertad of Paraguay.
Cruzeiro, last year’s losing finalists, took the lead in the seventh minute against Nacional when Ribeiro got behind the defense and slotted through the legs of goalkeeper Rodrigo Munoz.
Ribeiro earned his second with a header in the 22nd minute and again found space behind the defense to complete his triple with a low strike from the edge of the box in the 42nd minute.
Mario Regueiro pulled a goal back for Nacional five minutes after halftime, but the Uruguayans face a difficult task overcoming the deficit in the return leg on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, Universidad de Chile have a one-goal cushion ahead of their home leg after Rivarola capitalized on a mixup in the Alianza defense to race through and shoot high past goalkeeper George Forsyth in the 86th minute.
The return leg will be played in Santiago on Thursday.
The day’s final match saw surprise 2004 champions Once Caldas held to a goalless draw at home.
Roberto Gamarra hit the post for Libertad with a long-range drive following a free-kick in the 52nd minute and Victor Caceres’ deflected shot pounded the crossbar for Once Caldas in the 65th minute.
The return leg in Asuncion will also be played on Thursday.
The other first-leg results this week were San Luis 0, Estudiantes La Plata 1; Guadalajara 3, Velez Sarsfield 0; Universitario 0, Sao Paulo 0; Flamengo 1, Corinthians 0; and Banfield 3, Internacional 1.
Former world No. 2 Paula Badosa has withdrawn from this week’s Wuhan Open, organizers said on Tuesday, amid a racism row over an online photograph. Tournament organizers said the Spaniard had pulled out of the WTA 1000 tournament, citing a gastrointestinal illness, hours before her first-round match against Australian Ajla Tomljanovic. News outlets including Britain’s the Telegraph earlier reported that Badosa had posted a photo on Instagram in which she appeared to imitate a Chinese face by placing chopsticks on the corners of her eyes. The photo was taken last week in a restaurant in Beijing, where she reached the semi-finals of the
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one
RSS