SPAIN
Own-goal gifts Cordoba win
An own-goal by Rayo Vallecano de Madrid defender Abdoulaye Ba gifted Cordoba a 1-0 win in La Liga on Monday. Cordoba raced up the field on a counterattack and Senegalese central defender Ba’s mishit his attempted clearance and the ball landed in the back of goalkeeper Antonio Rodriguez’s net. Cordoba rose above the relegation zone to 15th place on 17 points, while Rayo are 11th on 20 points after 18 matches. Real Madrid lead the standings on 42 points after 17 matches, with a game in hand because of their participation in the FIFA Club World Cup last month. The postponed fixture against Sevilla is due to take place on Feb. 4 at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, the league announced on Monday. Barcelona are second on 41 points, three more than third-placed Atletico Madrid.
ENGLAND
United are biggest payers
Manchester United have the highest wage bill in the Premier League, according to figures released on Monday. United paid out a total of ￡214.8 million (US$324 million) on salaries in the 2013-2014 season, while English champions Manchester City’s wage costs dropped last season to ￡205 million. Chelsea, currently top of the Premier League, paid ￡190.5 million, up eight percent from ￡176 million, according to the club’s annual accounts which were lodged at Companies House this week. Arsenal are next in the pay league with a total wage bill of ￡166.4 million, while the scale of Southampton’s recent success is illustrated by the fact that their wage bill was a fraction of their top-four rivals. The latest figures available for 2012-2013 show the Saints, currently third in the Premier League after beating Manchester United on Sunday, paid out just ￡47.1 million in salaries. Chelsea’s accounts confirm the club’s announcement in November last year that they made a ￡18.4 million profit last season. Sales of several players allowed the club to overturn a ￡49.4 million loss the previous season.
ENGLAND
Reds’ Assaidi joins Al Ahli
Moroccan winger Oussama Assaidi has left Liverpool to join Dubai-based Al Ahli on a permanent deal, the Premier League side announced on Monday. The 26-year-old joined Liverpool from SC Heerenveen in 2012, but struggled to cement a consistent run in the team, making just 12 appearances for the Anfield side. He joined Stoke City on loan in September 2013, scoring five goals in 25 appearances in all competitions before returning to the Britannia Stadium for a second loan spell at the beginning of this campaign. “Liverpool Football Club can confirm Oussama Assaidi has left on a permanent transfer to join Al Ahli Club. The Moroccan winger ended a loan spell with Stoke City early in order to complete the switch to Dubai,” Liverpool said in a statement on their Web site.
ENGLAND
Foxes set to sign Kramaric
Leicester City are set to sign Croatia striker Andrej Kramaric after the Football Association (FA) on Monday gave their support to his work permit application. City have agreed a reported fee of ￡9.5 million to sign Kramaric from HNK Rijeka, but his three-and-a-half-year contract can only be signed once the permit has been granted. The 23-year-old’s lack of international experience, with only four caps to his name, meant a permit was not automatically granted, but having played for Croatia from under-14 through to under-21 level and recently having broken into the senior squad and scored goals, victory on appeal is likely — especially with the FA’s backing.
Japan’s Shohei Ohtani is the record-breaking baseball “superhuman” following in the footsteps of the legendary Babe Ruth who has also earned comparisons to US sporting greats Michael Jordan and Tom Brady. Not since Ruth a century ago has there been a baseball player capable of both pitching and hitting at the top level. The 30-year-old’s performances with the Los Angeles Dodgers have consolidated his position as a baseball legend in the making, and a national icon in his native Japan. He continues to find new ways to amaze, this year becoming the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases
Zhang Shuai yesterday said that she nearly quit after losing 24 matches in a row — now the world No. 595 is into the quarter-finals of her home China Open. The 35-year-old is to face Spain’s Paula Badosa as the lowest-ranked player to reach this stage in the history of the tournament after Badosa reeled off 11 of the last 12 games in a 6-4, 6-0 victory over US Open finalist Jessica Pegula. Zhang went into Beijing on a barren run lasting more than 600 days and her string of singles defeats was the second-longest on the WTA Tour Open era, which
Francesco Bagnaia yesterday profited from a mistake by rookie Pedro Acosta to win the Japan MotoGP sprint and close the gap on overall championship leader, Jorge Martin. Spaniard Acosta crashed with four laps to go while leading the field at Motegi, allowing defending world champion Bagnaia to take first ahead of Enea Bastianini and Marc Marquez. Spain’s Martin finished fourth and saw his overall lead over Italian Bagnaia in the championship standings cut to 15 points. “I am very happy because with these conditions, it’s not very easy to win and gain points,” Bagnaia said after a sprint race that took place under
Naomi Osaka is braced for a “battle” after yesterday setting up a clash with Coco Gauff in the round-of-16 of the China Open, while top seed Aryna Sabalenka also marched on. Osaka defeated 60th-ranked American Katie Volynets 6-3, 6-2 and next faces Gauff in a showdown of former US Open champions in Beijing. World No. 2 Sabalenka swatted aside Ashlyn Krueger 6-2, 6-2 for her 14th consecutive victory and plays another American in 24th-ranked Madison Keys. Looking ahead to the Gauff meeting, four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka said: “She’s very athletic, obviously.” “For me, my strongest traits are being aggressive and also my serve,
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