SOCCER
Brighton move into eighth
Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday moved into eighth place in the Premier League with a 4-2 mauling of Tottenham Hotspur to end a superb year under Italian manager Roberto de Zerbi. After his side’s first win in four Premier League games, De Zerbi was at pains to point out the size of the club’s achievements. “I am really lucky to be this coach of this team with these players. I am very pleased with the passion they have, they have everything,” he said. “You can’t forget we are Brighton. Sometimes they forget we are Brighton. We are not Manchester United, Manchester City, Newcastle or Arsenal, we are still Brighton. The other eight or nine big teams in the Premier League they do not sell their big players.” Joao Pedro scored two penalties as Brighton leaped to a 4-0 before being pegged back. Elsewhere, West Ham United beat Arsenal 2-0, denying the Reds a return to the top of the table.
Photo: AP
CRICKET
Cummins leads Australia
Australia Captain Pat Cummins’ second 10-wicket haul in Test matches yesterday led his side to a 79-run win over Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on the fourth day of the second Test. Cummins made all the crucial breakthroughs late in the day as the hosts bowled Pakistan out for 237. Pakistan lost 5-18 during a chaotic finish after Australia were out for 262 in their second innings. Wicketkeeper Alex Carey (53) helped push Australia’s lead to set the visitors 317 to win.
CRICKET
SA coach touts team
South Africa coach Shukri Conrad revealed his frustration on Thursday over his players being under-rated following an innings-and-32-run win over No. 1-ranked India in the first Test at Centurion. With opening batsman Dean Elgar scoring 185 and Marco Jansen making a career-best 84 not out, South Africa took their first-innings score to 408 for a 163-run lead on the third day. Their pacemen then bundled India out for just 131 in 34.1 overs, with only Virat Kohli (76) resisting their surge to victory. “This win was massive for us and what makes it bigger is that it makes sure India have never beaten us in a Test series here,” Conrad told reporters. “We know what a quality side India are, but we also know what we are. We are a brilliant team at home and we have really gelled as a unit. A lot of the time that has been about freeing the guys up, allowing them to be the best versions of themselves,” he said. “People have questioned whether South Africa still produce good players and we have shown that we do.”
‘AWFUL PERFORMANCE’: Golden State were always chasing the game after failing to threaten from long range, making just eight of 33 three-point attempts Aaron Gordon on Monday scored 38 points as the Denver Nuggets shrugged off the absence of Nikola Jokic to halt the Golden State Warriors’ seven-game winning streak with a 114-105 victory over their Western Conference rivals. A dazzling display from Gordon inspired what was ultimately a comfortable win for Denver, who were missing regular starters Jokic and Jamal Murray from their lineup. The absentees were barely felt by Denver, who startled the Warriors early at San Francisco’s Chase Center and led for most of the game. The Warriors threatened to stage a late rally after slashing the Nuggets’ fourth-quarter lead from 15 points
The US’ bid for a fourth consecutive CONCACAF Nations League title came to a stunning end as they fell 1-0 to Panama after a stoppage-time goal from Cecilio Waterman on Thursday in Inglewood, California. Despite dominating possession, the US struggled to break down a resilient Panama side for long periods. Panama spent the bulk of the match defending, but pounced on a giveaway by the US before substitute forward Waterman sent a shot from the right side of the area to the bottom left corner late in stoppage time. Up next for Panama in tomorrow’s final is to be Mexico, who beat
Barcelona’s Ferran Torres scored twice on Sunday to help secure a late 4-2 comeback win at Atletico Madrid in a pulsating La Liga clash that took the Catalan side back to the top of the table. Barca have 60 points and a game in hand after last week’s postponement of their home game with CA Osasuna. They are level on points with Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Villarreal on Saturday. “I am happy and proud of this team,” Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick told a news conference. “They never give up... It’s a great three points and we are happy to
Chris Wood has fired Nottingham Forest into surprise UEFA Champions League contention and now the striker wants to score the goals to help New Zealand make history at the FIFA World Cup. New Zealand are strong favorites to qualify out of the Oceania region over the next week and reach the World Cup for only the third time. At the country’s two previous appearances at the finals, in 1982 and 2010, they have failed to win a match in six attempts. With Wood captaining the side and leading from the front, he told local media yesterday that the current squad can finally deliver
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