Sports
Ba, Again Leads Africa’s Performance In Europe
Senegal’s Demba Ba is the English Premier League’s leading
scorer after netting both Newcastle United goals in a 2-2 draw at Reading at
the weekend.
Previously unhappy with the decision of manager Alan Pardew
to use him as a wide striker, Ba has netted five times in three outings. He has
six goals overall.
Malian Jimmy Kebe and Ivorian Gervinho were also on target
in the Premier League, whilst Angolan Manucho struck twice for Valladolid as
they eased to victory in Spain’s La Liga.
ENGLAND
DEMBA BA (Newcastle): The Senegal striker twice equalised in
a 2-2 draw against Reading. His first goal was a sublime volley on the run
following a clipped pass from Ivorian Cheick Tiote. But controversy surrounded
his second when he inadvertently diverted the ball into the net off his hand
with an attempted header.
JIMMY KEBE (Reading): The Malian opened the scoring in the
58th minute when he slotted a low shot inside the near post but the eventual
draw meant his side stay in the bottom three.
GERVINHO (Arsenal): The Ivorian drew the Gunners level
against Chelsea with a well-worked shot that saw him take just one touch before
beating Petr Cech from eight yards, but his goal was not enough to inspire an
Arsenal revival as Chelsea won 2-1. He has scored four goals this season, as
many as he managed for the entire 2011-12 campaign.
FRANCE
FOUED KADIR (Valenciennes): The Algeria midfielder scored
one goal and made another as Valenciennes ended Marseille’s 100 percent start
to the season with a stunning 4-1 win at Stade du Hainaut.
YOUNES BELHANDA (Montpellier): Belhanda broke the deadlock
as defending champions Montpellier won 2-0 at Nancy to register only their
second win of the new season. His Senegalese colleague Souleymane Camara made
the points safe in the final minute with a fine 25-yard drive.
CHEICK DIABATE (Bordeaux): Giant Mali striker Diabate got on
the score-sheet for the first time this season to seal Bordeaux’s
smash-and-grab 2-0 success at previously unbeaten Lyon. The towering
centre-forward out-jumped Mouhamadou Dabo to head home from close range in the
82nd minute, as Francis Gillot’s side extended their unbeaten run to 10 games
in all competitions.
GERMANY
JOEL MATIP (Schalke): The Cameroon international scored his
first goal of the season in a 2-2 draw at Fortuna Dusseldorf. Matip hit the
target with a well-timed header in the 20th minute from a Christian Fuchs
free-kick.
DIDIER YA KONAN (Hanover): Three days after scoring twice in
a 4-1 win over Nuremberg, the Ivory Coast star was kept at bay by the Hamburg
defence in 1-0 defeat. He came close, however, with an acrobatic scissor-kick
which went over the bar.
ITALY
KWADWO ASAMOAH (Juventus): Asamoah was used only as a
second-half substitute by Juventus caretaker coach Massimo Carrera in a 4-1 win
over Roma.
KEVIN PRINCE BOATENG (AC Milan): Boateng showed an improved
performance as the Rossoneri laboured to a 1-1 draw at Parma when they really
should have won the match. Boateng had several attempts on goal, but after
seeing ‘Little Pharaoh’ Stephan El Shaarawy – an Italian who has an Egyptian
father – score for his side the Ghanaian woke to media claims he had been a
“flop”.
SPAIN
ALEX SONG (Barcelona): It was another assured performance at
the back from Cameroon midfielder Song in a 3-2 win over Sevilla, as he
deputises in the absence of regular central defenders Gerard Pique and Carles
Puyol.
MANUCHO (Valladolid): Manucho’s Valladolid future was in
doubt earlier this year, but against Rayo Vallecano the Angolan produced one of
his best performances for the club with two goals in a 6-1 win.
OBAFEMI MARTINS (Levante): After making an immediate impact
with a winning goal in his debut last week against Real Sociedad, it was a
disappointing match for the Nigerian against Osasuna as Levante crashed 4-0. He
showed only glimpses of his pace and his only chance was a first-half header
that was comfortably saved.
Sports
Inter Best Juventus To Maintain Serie A Lead
Andrea Cambiaso scored at both ends during the first half of Saturday’s Derby d’Italia, before Pierre Kalulu’s red card forced Juventus to play the entire second half a man light.
Substitute Francesco Pio Esposito got Inter back in front with a bullet header, then Manuel Locatelli’s pinpoint finish looked to have salvaged a point for the Bianconeri, before Zielinski struck on the cusp of stoppage time.
Juventus made the brighter start, but they were masters of their own downfall in the 17th minute, when Cambiaso deflected Luis Henrique’s cross beyond Michele Di Gregorio.
Cambiaso atoned within nine minutes, catching Henrique on his heels when Weston McKennie’s cross squirmed through to the back post and applying a side-footed finish.
But after Bremer cleared Zielinski’s dinked effort off the line, Juve’s hopes were damaged when Kalulu received his second yellow card for a 42nd-minute pull on Alessandro Bastoni, though the Inter centre-back appeared to go down theatrically.
Di Gregorio made a remarkable stop to thwart Hakan Calhanoglu, but as Juventus dropped ever deeper, they were punished when substitute Esposito guided Federico Dimarco’s searching cross into the far corner with 76 minutes on the clock.
It looked like Inter would have to settle for a point when Locatelli whipped a wonderful finish into the bottom-left corner in the 83rd minute, but Zielinski had the final say as his 20-yard drive fizzed through Locatelli’s legs and beat Di Gregorio.
Sports
Szoboszlai’s Real Madrid Dream Sparks Concern At Liverpool
A cloud of uncertainty has settled over Liverpool after comments from Hungary head coach Marco Rossi reignited speculation about Dominik Szoboszlai and Real Madrid.
Rossi, who has worked closely with Szoboszlai since his teenage years, revealed that the midfielder’s lifelong ambition is to play for the Spanish giants.
“Because of the very close and direct relationship I’ve had with Dominik since he was a child, Real Madrid has always been his dream,” Rossi said.
For a Liverpool side building around Szoboszlai as a centerpiece of Arne Slot’s project, those words landed hard.
Within hours of Rossi’s remarks, Szoboszlai interacted on social media with two Real Madrid players, applauding posts from Vinicius Junior and Trent Alexander-Arnold following Madrid’s win over Real Sociedad.
His reaction to Vinicius’ post drew particular attention. The exchange with Alexander-Arnold, his former Liverpool teammate, was seen as less surprising.
Still, in the hyper-connected world of elite soccer, even a digital thumbs-up can carry weight. On Merseyside, fans and pundits quickly began dissecting the meaning behind the interactions.
Szoboszlai, Hungary’s captain, has become one of Liverpool’s most influential players. That status is precisely why Rossi’s comments triggered such an intense reaction in England.
The midfielder had just delivered on the field as well, scoring in Liverpool’s 3-0 FA Cup fourth-round victory over Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield.
After the match, Mohamed Salah heaped praise on his teammate, calling Szoboszlai “the best player in the world.” Slot struck a slightly more measured tone but echoed the sentiment.
“I think there are many elite players in the world, but I definitely agree with Mo that he is one of them,” Slot said. “He is very important for us.”
Szoboszlai is under contract at Liverpool through 2028. However, the club is reportedly eager to open extension talks in the coming months to secure his long-term future.
The player himself addressed the situation recently with notable candor.
“There’s nothing yet, to be honest. Nothing from now on. It’s not in my hands. That’s how it works,” he said. “There’s no progress, but if the right offer comes, we’ll see.”
He was equally clear about his affection for Liverpool.
“We’ll see what happens. Hopefully everyone will be happy in the end. Of course I want to stay. I like the city, I like the club, I like playing with these guys. I love Anfield, I love the fans. Let’s see what the future brings. It’s not my fault. I’d love to stay. We’ll see.”
Inter’s dramatic victory boosted their lead over rivals AC Milan to eight points, ahead of the Rossoneri hosting Como on Wednesday. Juventus, meanwhile, could drop out of the top four as Roma visited Napoli last night.
The last four Serie A matches between Inter and Juventus have produced a total of 21 goals (an average of 5.25 per game), compared to just nine in the previous six (1.5 per game).
Cambiaso became the first player in Derby d’Italia history to score and put through his own net in the same match between these old rivals, but it was Zielinski’s fifth Serie A goal of the season that proved decisive.
Inter will argue they were deserved victors after amassing 21 shots and 1.88 expected goals (xG), while Luciano Spalletti’s visitors mustered 10 shots and 0.92 xG – though the Bianconeri actually attempted six of their shots while down a man in the second half.
Sports
Wolves Beat Man Utd Conquerors
Premier League strugglers Wolves overcame resolute Grimsby Town in challenging conditions at Blundell Park to reach the FA Cup fifth round at the expense of the side that eliminated Manchester United in the last round.
Santiago Bueno scored from Wolves’ only shot on target with an hour played, diverting Joao Gomes’ cross past goalkeeper Jackson Smith with his thigh to end the League Two club’s resistance.
Unrelenting rainfall caused heavy ground underfoot and one penalty area in particular- that of Grimsby’s Smith in the first half – was already a quagmire before kick-off.
Charles Vernam shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box with just 43 seconds on the clock as Grimsby sought to catch their top-flight visitors cold.
Wolves had to wait until the 17th minute for their first opportunity of note, forward Tolu Arokodare firing over with a first-time attempt.
The white paint of the pitch markings soon blended and blurred with the mud as the surface rapidly deteriorated, and both sides struggled to stitch together cohesive attacks as passes travelled unpredictably across the sodden ground.
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