LA LIGA
Sevilla extend streak
Wissam Ben Yedder kept 10-man Sevilla unbeaten in eight La Liga games when he scored in stoppage-time to snatch a 1-1 draw against CD Leganes on Sunday. With dense fog at the Estadio Municipal de Butarque in Madrid, Ben Yedder slipped behind his marker and met Roque Mesa’s short cross at the far post where the forward nodded the ball off the turf and into the corner of the net. The draw left Pablo Machin’s Sevilla in third place and five points behind leaders Barcelona as the league starts its two-week winter break. “It was tough for us after they scored first, but we leave with a draw,” Ben Yedder said. “It is an important point.” Leganes had gone ahead when Mikel Vesga headed in a cross by Allan Nyom in the fifth minute. Sevilla were playing without top-scorer Pablo Sarabia and midfielder Ever Banega, both serving one-game suspensions for accumulating five yellow cards. They then lost Franco Vazquez when he was given a direct red card at halftime for arguing with the referee. Jesus Navas also had to be substituted during the break because of a muscle injury in his right leg. “This team showed it has spirit and courage,” Machin said. “We knew how to overcome the sending off and the problem with Jesus. I am sure [Vazquez] thought that he was right, but it doesn’t justify losing your temper and getting sent off.” In Sunday’s other games, Valencia beat Sociedad Deportiva Huesca 2-1 and Rayo Vallecano de Madrid defeated Levante UD 2-1.
LIGUE 1
Amiens, Bordeaux draw
Midfielder Eddy Gnahore scored late on as struggling Amiens SC secured a 1-1 draw against Girondins de Bordeaux in Ligue 1 on Sunday. Seven of the 17 league goals Amiens have scored this season have been in the final 20 minutes. Gnahore’s equalizer in the 87th minute came after the Bordeaux defense was caught out as a cross sailed over the penalty area. Gnahore kept his eye on the ball and broke into the box to score with a confident finish. It was his fourth goal of the season, making him the club’s top scorer heading into the winter break. Bordeaux took the lead after 23 minutes through Nigerian striker Samuel Kalu.
BUNDESLIGA
Gerhardt hits late winner
Yannick Gerhardt scored late to clinch a 3-2 win for VfL Wolfsburg against Augsburg in the Bundesliga on Sunday. Gerhardt’s 89th-minute winner lifted Wolfsburg to fifth place, three points behind RB Leipzig in the final Champions League spot and one point ahead of Eintracht Frankfurt. Augsburg made the better start, but Wolfsburg gradually gained control and Josuha Guilavogui scored after the visitors’ second corner. US defender John Brooks headed the ball on and the French midfielder prodded it home from close range. Brazilian defender William scored before the break after Augsburg missed several chances to clear. Rani Khedira dragged Augsburg back into the game when he scored minutes after the restart and Sergio Cordova equalized at about the hour mark. However, Gerhardt’s late strike proved too much for the home side. “You can see that we’re perhaps still a bit too naive,” Augsburg manager Manuel Baum said. TSG 1899 Hoffenheim drew 1-1 with visiting FSV Mainz in Sunday’s late game.
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
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one
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