CHINA
Surging China beat Paraguay
Asian Cup finalists China continued their encouraging form under Alain Perrin as they beat Paraguay 2-1 in a home friendly on Tuesday to record their first win over the South American side. Captain and AFC Player of the Year Zheng Zie opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the ninth minute after sending the goalkeeper the wrong way, with Wu Lei converting a second at the back post in the 18th. Nestor Ortigoza pulled one back for Paraguay in the 82nd with a header at the back post, but Perrin’s side hung on for the morale-boosting win in Changsa. China have lost only once in seven games since the Frenchman took charge as they continue preparations for January’s tournament, where they have been drawn in Group B with Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia and North Korea.
UNITED STATES
Colombia, Ecuador triumph
James Rodriguez scored in the 74th minute to give Colombia a 1-0 victory over Canada on Tuesday in an international friendly. The Real Madrid striker rescued his side from a spirited display by a the 120th-ranked Canadian squad. The match was the closer of a twin bill at the Red Bull Arena in New York that opened with Ecuador defeating El Salvador 5-1. Two goals each from Enner Valencia and Joao Plata powered Ecuador to the win, while Cristian Penilla added the match’s final goal in the 83rd minute. The only Salvadorean goal came off a penalty kick by Rafael Burgos in first-half stoppage-time. In another Tuesday friendly between South American teams, Chile drew Bolivia 2-2 at home.
UAE
UAE boss furious over loss
United Arab Emirates (UAE) boss Mahdi Ali hammered stay away fans and bemoaned losing out in a club-versus-country row as his side’s three-year unbeaten run at home ended with an emphatic 4-0 defeat by fellow Asian Cup finalists Uzbekistan in Dubai on Tuesday. The five changes Ali made to his lineup from Friday’s game against Cup hosts Australia fell flat and the coach said the shakeup was influenced by local clubs. “The players are under pressure from their clubs because the league resumes in three days and they are thinking of those matches more than the national team’s friendly,” Ali was quoted as saying by local media. “It is also shameful the national team doesn’t have any home support from the fans for home games. When we arrive at the stadium, we find a few fans and that gives the feeling that we are in a strange country. There is no support from our own fans, so how will the players be motivated?” The loss was just the third of Ali’s reign, which began in 2012, and the first for the UAE at home since a 2-0 defeat by South Korea in a FIFA World Cup qualifier in 2011.
ARMENIA
Gignac makes comeback
Andre-Pierre Gignac marked his first start for France in more than four years with a goal and two assists as the Euro 2016 hosts eased to a 3-0 friendly win in Armenia on Tuesday. Gignac set up goals for Loic Remy and substitute Antoine Griezmann either side of converting a second-half penalty in Yerevan as Didier Deschamps’ side followed up their 2-1 friendly win over Portugal at the weekend with a comfortable victory. Though ensuring he should remain part of Deschamps’ future plans, Gigan refused to get carried away, saying: “The competition for places in attack is ferocious. I don’t think I scored any points tonight particularly.” France’s next friendly is next month against Albania, while Armenia, who are yet to win in Group I, go to Portugal.
MEDVEDEV AWAITS: The world No. 1 Spainiard said that he is ‘finding the right shots’ as he pushed his record so far this year to 16 victories and no losses Carlos Alcaraz on Thursday extended his unbeaten season and got revenge over Cameron Norrie to reach the semi-finals at Indian Wells for a fifth straight year. The world No. 1 from Spain emerged from a see-saw battle with 29th-ranked Norrie with a 6-3, 6-4 victory. In the semis tomorrow, he faces Russian Daniil Medvedev, who pushed his own ATP winning streak to eight matches with a 6-1, 7-5 victory over defending champion Jack Draper. World No. 2 Jannik Sinner powered past Learner Tien 6-1, 6-2 to line up a semi-final with fourth-ranked Alexander Zverev, a 6-2, 6-3 winner over Arthur Fils. Alcaraz, 22, became
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
Thanks to Italy beating Mexico on Wednesday, the US get another chance in the World Baseball Classic (WBC). What looked like a potentially disastrous early exit for US manager Mark DeRosa and his team turned out to be nothing more than substantial worry and significant embarrassment for about 24 hours. It remains to be seen whether the US really want to win badly enough for the reprieve to matter, as if it is just a switch they can flick, but there is little reason for their fans to be optimistic. The team’s attitude and behavior have been all over the place when
Brice Turang and Pete Crow-Armstrong’s consecutive RBI singles proved to be the difference in the US’ 5-3 win over Canada in a World Baseball Classic (WBC) quarterfinal on Friday night in Houston. The US faces the Dominican Republic, which crushed South Korea 10-0 in seven innings in its quarter-final, in a semifinal Sunday in Miami for a spot in Tuesday’s championship. The Dominican team has won all five games in this WBC by a combined margin of 51-10. It appeared the US squad was headed toward a cozy victory when it built a 5-0 lead by the sixth inning. A first-inning RBI groundout
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