SOCCER
Watford in Premier League
Watford clinched promotion to the Premier League in dramatic fashion as their rivals slipped up in the final seconds on Saturday. Slavisa Jokanovic’s side had moved to the brink of reaching the top-flight with a 2-0 win at Brighton earlier in the day, yet it seemed like the Championship leaders would be made to wait for promotion by the results of the chasing pack. However, fourth-placed Norwich conceded an equalizer in a 1-1 draw at Rotherham and third-placed Middlesbrough slumped to a 4-3 defeat at Fulham after conceding a last-minute goal. That was enough to seal Watford’s return to the Premier League after an eight-year absence with one match remaining and they will be crowned Championship winners if second-placed Bournemouth lose to Bolton today.
SOCCER
Inter beat Roma 2-1
Mauro Icardi scored in added time as Inter beat visiting Roma 2-1 in Serie A on Saturday to signal a late charge for a spot in Europe. Roma remained level second with Lazio. Also, AC Milan’s four-match unbeaten run was halted by a 2-1 loss at Udinese. Yesterday, Juventus could clinch their fourth straight title if they beat Torino in a derby and Lazio loses. At the San Siro, midfielder Hernanes put Inter ahead 15 minutes in with a spectacular shot from beyond the area after creating some space amid several defenders. Four minutes later, Roma forward Victor Ibarbo hit the post. Roma’s Radja Nainggolan equalized in the 63rd, finishing off a counterattack with a long angled shot that left goalkeeper Samir Handanovic immobile. Icardi wasted a golden chance to win it for Inter when he shot high in the 84th, but he made up for it a few minutes later, finding the target through the legs of defender Jose Holebas after being set up by Lukas Podolski. Inter moved up to seventh, five points from the Europa League places. Earlier, Udinese scored twice in the second half to end a six-game winless run. Giampiero Pinzi was left unmarked to score from the center of the area through a crowd of defenders following a corner in the 58th, and Emmanuel Badu doubled the lead in the 75th from close range, redirecting a cross following a rebound. Filippo Inzaghi’s side was completely dominated until Giampaolo Pazzini pulled one back in the 88th with a leaping header on Milan’s only on-target attempt of the match. Udinese moved up to 12th. “We played a very ugly match,” Inzaghi said. “I’m very, very angry. There are no excuses. When a squad plays like that, the coach is more responsible for it than anyone else.”
GOLF
Henderson leads Skirts
Brooke Henderson had a one-shot lead and lost momentum going into the final round of the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic in Daly City, California, on Saturday. Henderson led by as many as five shots on a chilly afternoon at Lake Merced until making bogeys on her last two holes. The 17-year-old Canadian had to settle for an even-par 72 and the lead over Morgan Pressel and Kwak Min-seo. Pressel birdied four of her last six holes for a 67 on a day when the course average was 74.6. Kwak had a 69. Those were the only two rounds in the 60s. Henderson was denied a waiver for the age minimum of 18 to try to join the LPGA Tour. She was hopeful a victory yesterday could change that. Taiwan’s Hsu Wei-ling carded a 74, while her compratriots Hsieh Yu-ling shot a 75, Hou Yu-sang a 76 and Chen Meng-chu a 78. Kaohsiung-born Taiwanese-American Candie Kung shot an 81.
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Arne Slot has denied that Darwin Nunez was dropped from Liverpool’s win against West Ham because of a training-ground row with a member of his coaching staff. The Liverpool head coach on Sunday last week said that Nunez was absent from the 2-1 victory at Anfield, having felt unwell during training the day before, although the striker sat behind the substitutes throughout the game. Speculation has been rife that the Uruguay international, whom Slot criticized for his work rate against Wolves and Aston Villa in February, was left out for disciplinary reasons. Asked on Friday to clarify the situation, Slot said: “He
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