COPPA ITALIA
Motta stars in shoot-out
SS Lazio’s 21-year-old goalkeeper Edoardo Motta on Wednesday saved four consecutive spot-kicks as the Roman club beat Atalanta BC in a penalty shoot-out to reach the Coppa Italia final. The score was 1-1 after extra-time. The first leg ended 2-2. Motta — who joined Lazio in January — stopped shots from Gianluca Scamacca, Davide Zappacosta, Mario Pasalic and Charles de Ketelaere as Lazio won the shoot-out 2-1, with Gustav Isaksen and Kenneth Taylor converting for the visitors. Lazio face Serie A leaders Inter in the May 13 final.
Photo: EPA
LA LIGA
Barcelona beat Celta
Barcelona on Wednesday restored their nine-point lead over Real Madrid in the Spanish league with a 1-0 win over RC Celta de Vigo during which Lamine Yamal and Joao Cancelo were injured before halftime. Yamal was hurt while converting a penalty that secured Barcelona’s eighth straight league victory. Spain forward Yamal, 18, and Portugal defender Cancelo, 27, had to be replaced with apparent muscle ailments. There were no immediate details about the severity of their injuries. Elsewhere, Atletico Madrid’s league struggles continued with a 3-2 loss against Elche, their fourth consecutive match without a victory in the competition, while Getafe moved into sixth place with their seventh win in 10 matches, beating Real Sociedad 1-0 and keeping them in eighth.
FRANCE
Kvaratskhelia leads PSG
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia on Wednesday scored twice as Paris Saint-Germain won 3-0 in Ligue 1 over relegation-threatened Nantes. PSG’s home win kept them four points above Lens with four rounds of the French league remaining. Kvaratskhelia opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 13th minute. It was awarded after a video check penalized Nantes defender Frederic Guilbert for handball because Marquinhos’ header brushed against his arm. Desire Doue made it 2-0 in the 37th minute after Achraf Hakimi played him through before he left fly with a fierce strike from a difficult angle inside the far corner. Kvaratskhelia grabbed his second after the break, shimmying past two defenders and poking the ball past Anthony Lopes. In the Coupe de France, Strasbourg advanced to the final with a 2-0 win over visiting Nice. Strasbourg are to play Lens in the May 22 decider at the Stade de France after Lens defeated Toulouse 4-1 in the first semi-final on Tuesday.
DFB-POKAL
Bayern make final
Harry Kane and Luis Diaz on Wednesday fired Bayern Munich into the final with a 2-0 win against Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Kane’s first-half strike — his 52nd goal of the season across all competitions for his club — and a goal from Diaz in stoppage-time were enough for Bayern to advance to the final against VfB Stuttgart or SC Freiburg at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on May 23. Defending champions Stuttgart were to play Freiburg after press time last night.
Taiwan’s Lee Hao-yu on Friday went 0-for-3 in his MLB debut for the Detroit Tigers against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, becoming the 19th Taiwan-born player to reach the big leagues. The Tigers ultimately lost 1-0 in 10 innings, ending their six-game winning streak. The 23-year-old started at third base and batted eighth for Detroit. He was promoted from Triple-A Toledo ahead of the four-game series against the Red Sox at the latter’s home stadium, replacing injured utility player Zach McKinstry. “Being right-handed, and given our schedule, I think six of the next 12 games are going to
Matheus Cunha on Saturday fired Manchester United toward the UEFA Champions League with a 1-0 win at Chelsea, while Tottenham Hotspur remain in the relegation zone after twice blowing the lead to draw with Brighton & Hove Albion. Chelsea failed to take advantage of a United defense ravaged by injury and suspension as a fourth straight league defeat for the Blues left their Champions League hopes in ruins. United have missed out on the riches of Europe’s elite competition for the past two seasons, but are closing in on a return thanks to an upturn in fortunes under interim manager
Italian soccer is at its lowest ebb in nearly 40 years after a wholesale European exodus at club level followed the nation’s failure for the third successive time to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, and compounded a leadership and structural crisis. The exits suffered by Bologna and ACF Fiorentina on Thursday in the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League respectively meant no Italian teams are left in European competition this season. Italy’s last remaining UEFA Champions League contenders, Atalanta BC, went out in the round of 16 last month. It is the first time since the 1986-1987 campaign that Italian clubs
The Detroit Tigers’ Lee Hao-yu on Monday collected his first and second MLB hits in their 8-6 loss to the Boston Red Sox. The Tigers’ No. 6 prospect, who batted eighth, had an RBI single and a double in four at-bats at Fenway Park, raising his batting average to .182. “He was super thrilled to get his first hit,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said after the game. “There’s only one first, you know, and for him, it’s been a couple of games where he’s really been wanting to do it. I’m glad he did it here.” “Young guys settle in when they start
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