BOXING
No retirement talk: Pacquiao
Philippine great Manny Pacquiao will box on irrespective of the outcome of his Nov. 24 fight against American Brandon Rios, the eight-weight world champion said on Wednesday. Two straight defeats, the second a sixth-round knockout by old foe Juan Manuel Marquez in December last year, have triggered talk of retirement, which would only increase if he loses in Macau as well. However, the 34-year-old Filipino said he would not even give retirement a thought. “[I] just want to go out and win this fight,” Pacquiao told reporters through adviser Michael Koncz via a teleconference. The boxer dismissed any hangover from his last two losses and said he was feeling comfortable and confident ahead of the Macau showdown. Pacquiao dismissed his last two defeats as part of boxing and denied being under any pressure to re-establish himself as the world’s best pound-for-pound boxer. However, he conceded that the Rios fight would be crucial. “This is one of the most important ones because I want to show my fans in the world that I can still compete at the high level,” he said.
SOCCER
Sunderland make quarters
A rare goal from Phil Bardsley put Sunderland on the road to a League Cup quarter-final clash with Chelsea as they beat Southampton 2-1 on Wednesday. It was only Sunderland’s fourth win of the season and their third in the same competition as they set up manager Gus Poyet for a reunion with his old club. Bardsley struck from close range 14 minutes into the second half, after former Sunderland goalkeeper Kelvin Davis had parried Jozy Altidore’s header. Substitute Sebastian Larsson looked to have wrapped up the win with a second four minutes from time, but defender Maya Yoshida’s late header set up a tense conclusion.
BOXING
Mundine vs Mosley back on
Anthony Mundine yesterday said US boxing great Shane Mosley will return to Australia to face him in a rescheduled non-title middleweight fight in Sydney on Nov. 27. Former world middleweight champion Mundine and his manager Khoder Nasser told a press conference the bout was back on after the pair guaranteed Mosley a A$1 million (US$947,000) purse up front. The announcement comes a little over two weeks after Mosley flew home on the eve of the initial fight on Oct. 23, citing a breach of contract with the previous promoter. “This time, it’s going to be done,” Mundine said of his first bout since losing an IBF world middleweight title fight to fellow Australian and archrival Daniel Geale in January. “I’m excited. I’m focused on one goal and that’s proving to the world, to myself, to my fans, and the boxing world that I belong with the legends,” he said. Mosley, who has won five world titles in three weight classes, announced his retirement in June last year after he lost a unanimous decision to junior middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez of Mexico. However, the 42-year-old returned to the ring in May, beating Pablo Cesar Cano by unanimous decision to win the vacant WBC welterweight title in Mexico.
FOOTBALL
Phillips acting Texans coach
Texans defensive coordinator Wade Phillips will take over as Houston’s interim head coach and try to help the team end a six-game skid with Gary Kubiak out indefinitely after suffering a mini-stroke this weekend. “I’m just keeping the seat warm,” Phillips said. It is a familiar position for Phillips, a 30-plus-year NFL coaching veteran, who was last a head coach in Dallas and has twice served as an interim head coach.
US national team star Folarin Balogun was among the scorers as AS Monaco on Friday won 3-1 at Paris Saint-Germain, dealing a blow to the side from the French capital before they face Chelsea in a crunch UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie. Maghnes Akliouche gave Monaco a first-half lead at the Parc des Princes, and Aleksandr Golovin doubled their advantage early in the second half of the French Ligue 1 clash. Bradley Barcola pulled one back for the reigning European champions, but Balogun struck shortly after with a fifth goal in his last five games as Monaco claimed a precious
Teenage star Lamine Yamal’s superbly-taken goal on Saturday earned Barcelona a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao in Spanish La Liga. The champions restored their four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid, who had on Friday temporarily closed the gap by beating Celta Vigo. Atletico Madrid tightened their grip on third with an entertaining 3-2 win over Real Sociedad. Yamal, 18, curled into the top corner after 68 minutes to split the sides at Athletic’s San Mames stadium. “We’re already seeing what Lamine can do — he puts it right in the top corner, and there’s nothing the keeper can do,” Barca
West Ham United on Monday advanced to the FA Cup quarter-finals with a 5-3 penalty shoot-out win against Brentford, who paid the price for Dango Ouattara’s spot-kick blunder. Nuno Espirito Santo’s side twice blew the lead as Jarrod Bowen’s double was canceled out by an Igor Thiago brace to force extra-time in the 2-2 draw at the London Stadium, but in the shoot-out, Brentford winger Ouattara attempted a chipped Panenka penalty, but his woeful effort was straight at West Ham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola. It was an awful mistake by the Burkina Faso international and West Ham took full advantage. Bowen, Valentin Castellanos, Callum
CHANCE TO QUALIFY: Both teams now have three points from two games, and Taiwan sit ahead of Vietnam and behind Japan, who last night beat India 11-0 Taiwan yesterday defeated Vietnam 1-0 to move into second place in Group C at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup with one match remaining. Su Yu-hsuan scored the decisive goal in the 26th minute after Taiwan midfielder Saki Matsunaga’s shot hit the crossbar, leaving Su to nod the rebound into an empty net for the team which won the last of their three Asian Cup titles in 1981. It was a deserved victory for Taiwan, 2-0 losers to Japan on Wednesday, who created several chances to extend their lead. Vietnam, the 2022 quarter-finalist, beat India in their opener, but struggled to
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