GERMANY
Fans riot during derby
About 200 Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04 fans were taken into custody after a snack bar was destroyed and police were attacked as trouble broke out at the Ruhr Valley derby on Saturday. Most of those detained were Schalke supporters, German police said in a statement. “Dortmund and Schalke’s violent criminals consciously undermined our security concept,” police director Dieter Keil said. “Their aim was to fight their rivals and innocent people.” The trouble started when several hundred visiting fans lit flares on their way to the stadium in Dortmund. They fought home supporters and then attacked police when they tried to separate them. The Bundesliga match ended in a 2-1 win for third-placed Schalke over Dortmund who are fourth in the table. The troublemakers had masks, pepper spray, flares and other banned objects, police said. Officers used a water cannon to stop Schalke supporters trying to destroy a fence while mounted police were also attacked with stones. The rival fans also provoked each other inside the stadium and more than 1,000 police were called in to keep them apart.
UNITED KINGDOM
FA to investigate incident
The FA is to investigate the incident in which Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper Chris Kirkland was attacked during a match by an opposing fan, English soccer’s ruling body said on Saturday. Kirkland, a former England international, was knocked to the floor with a push to the face by a Leeds United supporter during an English Championship game on Friday. “We are investigating the events of last night and awaiting the referee’s report,” an FA spokesman said. The 31-year-old Kirkland received medical treatment on the pitch and was able to finish the Yorkshire derby which ended in a 1-1 draw. “With the public’s assistance we have clearly identified the offender who ran onto the pitch during last night’s game ... and who is suspected of assaulting the Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper,” South Yorkshire Police’s senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Mark Monteiro said. “We are dealing with the complaint made by the player and we are currently taking statements, collating evidence and making enquiries to locate and arrest the offender.”
JAPAN
Wilson nets twice for Sendai
Brazilian forward Wilson scored a pair of goals as Vegalta Sendai beat Urawa Reds 3-2 on Saturday to keep the pressure on J-League leader Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Hiroshima were beaten 2-1 by Kashiwa Reysol. Both Sanfrecce and Vegalta have 54 points with Hiroshima leading on goal difference. Urawa is in third with 48 points. Vegalta’s Shingo Akamine opened the scoring with a header in the second minute at Yurtec Stadium and Wilson doubled the advantage 15 minutes later with a left-foot shot from 13 meters. Tomoaki Makino pulled one back for Urawa before the break, but Wilson restored the two-goal advantage in the 36th minute before Marcio Richardes made it 3-2 with his ninth goal of the season three minutes later. Elsewhere, Yokohama F Marinos beat Jubilo Iwata 4--0 to improve to 43 points, while Gamba Osaka defeated Kawasaki Frontale 3-2, with Akihiro Ienaga scoring twice and Hiroki Fujiharu adding another. Kashima Antlers were held to a 0-0 draw by relegated Consadole Sapporo while Shimizu S-Pulse drew 1-1 against Vissel Kobe. Nagoya Grampus beat Sagan Tosu 3-1 while Cerezo Osaka and FC Tokyo finished 1-1.
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LIKE FINE WINE: Thirty-eight-year-old Djokovic won his 101st title of his career in Athens, becoming the oldest tournament winner since Ken Roswell, 44, in 1977 Elena Rybakina on Saturday clinched her biggest title since Wimbledon in 2022, defeating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 7-6 (7/0) at the WTA Finals in Riyadh. The world No. 6 put on yet another serving masterclass and was at her returning best as she became the first Kazakh and the first player representing an Asian country to lift the WTA Finals singles trophy. Having gone 3-0 in round-robin play, Rybakina earned a record US$5.235 million and would finish the year ranked No. 5 in the world. “It’s been an incredible week, I honestly didn’t expect any result, and to go so far,
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