ARGENTINA
River Plate go for broke
Relegation-threatened River Plate went for broke against Colon on Sunday, but the gamble of playing three central strikers in the second half almost backfired on the Argentine giants, who had to fight back from a goal down to draw 1-1. The solitary point was not enough to give desperate River some breathing space as they battle to improve their poor three-season average and keep their heads above the drop zone. River are just above the bottom four with two matches to go in the Clausura championship, but should they slip into the zone they would face a playoff against a second-division side. With his team having made little headway in the first half, River coach J.J. Lopez took off two midfielders at halftime and sent on center forwards Mariano Pavone and Gabriel Funes Mori to join Leandro Caruso in a three-pronged spearhead. The decision appeared to have backfired dramatically when wily 38-year-old striker Esteban Fuertes, the oldest active player in the Argentine top flight, put Colon ahead just before the hour-mark, side-footing past goalkeeper Juan Pablo Carrizo. However, with nine minutes left River snatched an equalizer, “Tank” Pavone passing to Funes Mori in front of goal and when the youngster missed the ball it ran loose to Caruso, who blasted it home.
FIFA
Warner’s ‘tsunami’ on hold
Suspended FIFA vice president Jack Warner has backed down for legal reasons from his threat to reveal the content of e-mails with the ruling body’s president Sepp Blatter. Warner had promised a “football tsunami” would follow his suspension by FIFA’s ethics committee last week, but on Sunday he produced little more than a gentle Caribbean breeze. In a brief speech on Sunday, Warner reiterated his innocence, but said he would not be making public the e-mails after discussions with his lawyers. “I had plans to speak to you today a bit more on this matter, but the best legal advice I received has suggested that I do not do so at this point in time and that advice I am going to respect,” he said.
BRAZIL
Notorious fan brain dead
Rosinery Mello do Nascimento, a Brazilian fan who achieved notoriety after triggering the greatest scandal in Chilean soccer, has been left brain dead after suffering an aneurysm, her family announced on Sunday. In 1989, do Nascimento, then aged 24, attended a Chile v Brazil qualifier for the 1990 World Cup at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana Stadium. During the match she hurled a firework from the stands which landed near Chile goalkeeper Roberto Rojas. The Chile team surrounded their goalkeeper, before quitting the pitch, declaring that Rojas had been injured when the firework exploded. The referee stopped the match. Television pictures later showed that Rojas’ injuries were self-inflicted. He was subsequently banned for life. Then-manager Osvaldo Aravena and then-team doctor Daniel Rodriguez were also banned from the game.
AZERBAIJAN
Vogts pelted with loo paper
German veteran Berti Vogts, the national team coach, was pelted with toilet paper at a press conference in Baku on Sunday by journalists angry about recent results. The journalists — some of whom also gave Vogts a pitcher used for post-toilet washing in the mainly Muslim country — demanded the German’s resignation after the team’s Euro 2012 qualifier defeat to Kazakhstan on Friday. Despite the insults, Vogts said he did not intend to quit ahead of Azerbaijan’s match with Germany today.
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
A stunning Lamine Yamal strike on Thursday helped crown Barcelona La Liga champions with a 2-0 win over local rivals RCD Espanyol, with victory ensuring Real Madrid cannot catch them at the top of the table. Yamal’s effort and Fermin Lopez’s goal took Hansi Flick’s side seven points clear of Los Blancos with two matches remaining, to clinch Barcelona’s 28th title and complete a superb domestic treble. Only the UEFA Champions League title escaped an exciting young Barca side this season, as they won the league for the second time in six years, at Espanyol’s ground again just as in 2022-2023. Back then,
Jannik Sinner on Thursday marched into the semi-finals of the Italian Open after destroying Casper Ruud in straight sets 6-0, 6-1, while Coco Gauff won a marathon three-set battle with China’s Zheng Qinwen to advance to the women’s singles final. American Gauff is to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in today’s title match after pulling through 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) in a match that lasted over three-and-a-half hours. Ruud was supposed to be Sinner’s toughest test in Rome since he came back from his three-month doping ban, as the Norwegian came into the match in hot form on clay after winning in
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before
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