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Football brings hope to Iraqi girls in ex-IS town Bartalla (Iraq) (AFP) – Spurred on by their coach, Christian girls kick the ball around a field in Iraq’s Bartalla, a former jihadist stronghold where football is helping them dream of a better future. In 2014, the Islamic State group seized control of the town in its sweep through the northern province of Nineveh, before subjecting women and girls to a harsh interpretation of Islam. Four years on from IS’s defeat the roughly 1,500 families who returned have been trying to restore a semblance of normality to Bartalla, about 12 kilometres (seven miles) east of Mosul, once the jihadists’ de facto capital in Iraq. A football academy opened its doors to girls six months ago equipped with artificial turf, thanks to funding from Lara, an Iraqi Christian non-governmental organisation. “Here we do everything to teach young girls the basics of football,” said coach Joanne Yusef Chaba. The coach, a 22-year-old physical education graduate, said her dream was “to start a women’s team that will compete in the future” in one of two already established women’s leagues in Iraq. Dressed in brightly coloured bibs, the girls do stretching exercises on the freshly laid pitch before Yusef Chaba blows a whistle for the start of practice. After an exchange of passes, one of the players brings a ball under control before dribbling the length of the 40-metre (yard) pitch and unleashing a shot that rattles the post. – ‘Lack of support’ – “Being here allows us to forget hard times,” said Yusef Chaba, who fled to Arbil with her family two hours before the jihadists arrived in her hometown. “Today when people see us, it raises their hopes and gives them confidence,” added the recent graduate who is looking for a job. “Here we forget about our daily worries.” About 50 girls aged between 10 and 15 are enrolled at the academy where they attend two-hour training sessions twice a week. Miral Jamal was six years old when she fled Bartalla with her family to escape the jihadists. Now aged 13, she is passionate about football. “The players here feel good,” said the schoolgirl. “Football relieves us… there’s nothing else to do in the city. I look forward to the training sessions.” The families’ modest monthly contributions — between 5,000 and 10,000 Iraqi dinars ($3 and $7) — go towards renting the field on land owned by a church. For other expenses, the four founders from local families dip into their own pockets. Hala Thomas, who helped to launch the academy, recently travelled to Baghdad to meet with government officials and seek funding. She received promises, but nothing concrete. “We don’t have enough money to buy more balls, outfits or what we need for training,” said the 55-year-old, who opted to stay in her hometown rather than join her sons in the Netherlands. “Despite the lack of support from sports institutions, we are hopeful that we can have a women’s football team,” she added. – ‘Breath of fresh air’ – During its three-year rule over nearly a third of Iraq, IS subjected hundreds of thousands of women to its rigid interpretation of Islam, using beatings and executions as punishments. In Mosul and its surrounding province, jihadists raped, kidnapped and enslaved thousands of women and adolescent girls. After the IS onslaught in 2014, tens of thousands of Christians fled northern Nineveh province, some escaping to nearby Iraqi Kurdistan and others going into exile. That only worsened an exodus since the US-led 2003 invasion, which has seen Iraq’s Christian minority shrink from more than 1.5 million to only around 400,000. Across the Nineveh plain, churches and monasteries destroyed and burned by the jihadists have been restored. But the challenges of rebuilding remain daunting in the ravaged province. “Football is a breath of fresh air for any community,” said neighbourhood leader Bassem Metti. “We needed something that would encourage stability in our daily lives and that would start to be tangible.”

Bartalla (Iraq) (AFP) – Spurred on by their coach, Christian girls kick the ball around a field in Iraq’s Bartalla, a former jihadist stronghold where football is helping them dream of a better future. In 2014, the Islamic State group seized control of the town in its sweep through the northern province of Nineveh, before subjecting women and girls to a harsh interpretation of Islam. Four years on from IS’s defeat the roughly 1,500 families who returned have been trying to restore a semblance of normality to Bartalla, about 12 kilometres (seven miles) east of Mosul, once the jihadists’ de facto capital in Iraq. A football academy opened its doors to girls six months ago equipped with artificial turf, thanks to funding from Lara, an Iraqi Christian non-governmental organisation. “Here we do everything to teach young girls the basics of football,” said coach Joanne Yusef Chaba. The coach, a 22-year-old physical education graduate, said her dream was “to start a women’s team that wi

Mueller urges Bayern to answer cup criticism in Europe Berlin (AFP) – Thomas Mueller says Bayern Munich must use the criticism from their shock German Cup disaster to help them secure a spot in the Champions League knockout phase by beating Benfica on Tuesday. “When FC Bayern crashes out of the cup with a 5-0 defeat, it’s clear that one or two comments are made that are slightly below the belt,” said Mueller. The 32-year-old scored and created three assists Saturday as Bayern romped to a 5-2 win at Union Berlin to stay top of the Bundesliga three days after their 5-0 cup thrashing at Borussia Moenchengladbach. In Europe, Bayern are five points clear in Group E and a win over second-placed Benfica would guarantee a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League. Bayern were hurt by a string of negative headlines amid the fallout of their shock cup defeat which Mueller wants to use as extra motivation. “(The criticism) is okay with me, we’re not made of egg shells – you have to be able to take it sometimes, but we must not forget that we are still out of the cup,” said Mueller. “We didn’t just lose a game, but (are out of) a competition that means a lot to us. We have to deal with that accordingly,” he added. Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski, who netted twice in Berlin on Saturday, is set to make his 100th Champions League appearance. “We showed from the very first minute that we are here to win,” said Lewandowski in Berlin. “Now we can focus on Tuesday.” The Poland star has already scored five goals in three European games this season. He netted twice in both the 3-0 win at Barcelona and the 5-0 home rout of Dynamo Kiev before scoring again in the 4-0 romp against Benfica in Lisbon two weeks ago. Bayern head coach Julian Nagelsmann, who missed the win in Portugal after testing positive for Covid-19, is expected to be back on the bench after spending 14 days at home in isolation. Mueller described their listless cup performance at Gladbach as the worst he has witnessed in 13 years playing for Bayern. But Nagelsmann’s assistant, Dino Toppmoeller, believes Mueller is playing some of the best football of his distinguished career. The Germany international has scored six times in 16 appearances for Bayern this season, adding 11 assists. “Thomas is a very important player for us with a lot of experience and in games like this, you need leaders like Thomas,” said Toppmoeller.

Berlin (AFP) – Thomas Mueller says Bayern Munich must use the criticism from their shock German Cup disaster to help them secure a spot in the Champions League knockout phase by beating Benfica on Tuesday. “When FC Bayern crashes out of the cup with a 5-0 defeat, it’s clear that one or two comments are made that are slightly below the belt,” said Mueller. The 32-year-old scored and created three assists Saturday as Bayern romped to a 5-2 win at Union Berlin to stay top of the Bundesliga three days after their 5-0 cup thrashing at Borussia Moenchengladbach. In Europe, Bayern are five points clear in Group E and a win over second-placed Benfica would guarantee a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League. Bayern were hurt by a string of negative headlines amid the fallout of their shock cup defeat which Mueller wants to use as extra motivation. “(The criticism) is okay with me, we’re not made of egg shells – you have to be able to take it sometimes, but we must not forget that we

Ronaldo: Help or hindrance for Man Utd? London (AFP) – Manchester United’s re-signing of Cristiano Ronaldo appeared to be a no-brainer — the galvanising return of a club great with the swagger of a proven winner and guaranteed goals. But is it more complicated than that? Is the presence of the Portuguese superstar at the fulcrum of the attack helping or hindering the team, who have made a stuttering start to the season? United are preparing for Tuesday’s Champions League encounter against Atalanta after a morale-boosting 3-0 win against Tottenham that helped ease the pressure on manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after their 5-0 hammering by Liverpool. Ronaldo will go into the match on a high after ending a mini-drought in the league, scoring a superb volley and setting up Edinson Cavani for United’s second. His Premier League return so far has been solid rather than spectacular by his own standards — four goals in seven Premier League matches — less than half of Mohamed Salah’s haul of 10 for Liverpool. But he has made the difference in the Champions League, twice scoring dramatic late winners, against Villarreal and Atalanta, to haul United to the top of Group F. Despite his goals, Ronaldo has been criticised for his lack of defensive work in a team that has kept just two clean sheets all season. There have been hints that some of his teammates at previous club Juventus felt the same way but the former Real Madrid player says he will silence his accusers. “I know when the team needs my help defensively,” he told Sky Sports. “But my role in the club is to win, help the team to win and to score goals — (the defensive side) is part of my job. “The people who don’t want to see that is because they don’t like me but to be honest I’m 36, I win everything so am I going to be worried about the people who say bad things about me? “I sleep good at night. I go to my bed with my conscience very good. Keep going with that because I will still close mouths and win things.” – Attacking blueprint – Ronaldo’s return to United after he appeared to be on he brink of joining rivals Manchester City forced Solskjaer to rewrite his attacking blueprint. The arrival of the five-time Ballon d’Or winner has limited chances for fellow veteran striker Cavani, who impressed in his first season at Old Trafford last year. Jadon Sancho, who sealed a highly anticipated big-money switch from Borussia Dortmund in July, has barely made an impact, still without an assist or goal. And attackers Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood, 20, were forced to sit out Saturday’s match at Tottenham to accommodate a front two of Ronaldo and Cavani — paired together from the start for the first time. Solskjaer spoke of the value of experience after the win at Tottenham and he certainly needs his big players to step up for the sake of his own position. Ronaldo is a serial winner but it remains to be seen whether he can prove the difference in a United team that lacks identity and cohesion. The Portuguese superstar won the Champions League and three Premier League titles in his first spell at Old Trafford under Alex Ferguson. He followed up with silverware at Real Madrid including four more Champions League titles and collected two Serie A titles with Juventus. But even Ronaldo does not guarantee success. In his three seasons in Turin, Juve never made it beyond the Champions League quarter-finals and Inter Milan also ended Juventus’ nine-year grip on Serie A last season. Ronaldo is not the tricky winger he was in his earlier years, becoming more of an out-and-out striker, but he still has the ability to conjure up moments of magic. One thing has not changed in his two decades at the top — it is impossible to ignore him.

London (AFP) – Manchester United’s re-signing of Cristiano Ronaldo appeared to be a no-brainer — the galvanising return of a club great with the swagger of a proven winner and guaranteed goals. But is it more complicated than that? Is the presence of the Portuguese superstar at the fulcrum of the attack helping or hindering the team, who have made a stuttering start to the season? United are preparing for Tuesday’s Champions League encounter against Atalanta after a morale-boosting 3-0 win against Tottenham that helped ease the pressure on manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after their 5-0 hammering by Liverpool. Ronaldo will go into the match on a high after ending a mini-drought in the league, scoring a superb volley and setting up Edinson Cavani for United’s second. His Premier League return so far has been solid rather than spectacular by his own standards — four goals in seven Premier League matches — less than half of Mohamed Salah’s haul of 10 for Liverpool. But he has made the

Ibrahimovic ‘old age’ free-kick keeps 10-man Milan in touch with Napoli Milan (AFP) – Zlatan Ibrahimovic described his 150th Serie A goal from a free-kick as an “old age” shot as AC Milan beat Jose Mourinho’s Roma 2-1 on Sunday to remain second on goal difference in the table behind Napoli. The Sweden striker, who turned 40 earlier this month, also thought he had scored his 400th goal in domestic leagues but was denied a second of the encounter with VAR finding offside in the second half. Stefano Pioli’s side finished the game down a man as left-back Theo Hernandez was shown a red card for a shoulder challenge. “Every now and then, I pull a surprise! You must always give it a go, as failure is part of success, so you keep trying,” Ibrahimovic told DAZN about his free-kick clocked at at 101km/h. “It usually goes quicker! At least 200kmh! I think I must be slowing my shot in old age,” he added. Milan were under pressure after Napoli had opened up a three-point gap at the top of the table after claiming the spoils in a 1-0 derby victory over Salernitana. At the Stadio Olimpico, Ibrahimovic broke the deadlock just before the half-hour mark. He drove home a low free kick after Rick Karsdorp’s foul on Rafael Leao. Ibrahimovic believed he had claimed a second, and a fourth for the campaign, but VAR adjudged him to be offside, after 50 minutes. Milan eventually claimed a second as Ivory Coast midfielder Franck Kessie converted from the penalty spot just before the hour mark. The 18-time Italian champions’ hopes of claiming the three points appeared to be dealt a blow with 25 minutes to play as France defender Hernandez was shown a red card for a second bookable offence. They were then given a scare late on as Roma’s Nicolo Zaniolo had an 81st minute header blocked on the line before their former midfielder Stephan El Shaarawy claimed an additional time consolation effort. Earlier, Poland midfielder Piotr Zielinski scored as league leaders Napoli overcame lowly Salernitana. Zielinski claimed his second goal of the season with half an hour left at the Arechi Stadium as both sides finished with 10 men. Napoli were without in-form Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen due to injury, with captain Lorenzo Insigne on the bench. They failed to create a clear first-half chance. “Insigne has a muscular fatigue, he was at risk of getting hurt,” Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti said. “I decided to keep him out, avoiding any risk,” Spalletti added before Thursday’s Europa League trip to Legia Warsaw. Earlier, Joaquin Correa’s slick second-half double earned Inter Milan a 2-0 win over Udinese to consolidate the defending champions’ hold on third place. The Argentina international joined Inter on loan from Lazio in August and made an immediate impact, scoring twice on his debut against Verona. He repeated the feat, after missing three games this season through injury, against Udinese, who reached the interval having survived a seven-shot onslaught from Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella, and a goalmouth scramble. Correa finally got the breakthrough goal on the hour, running through afer Ivan Perisic’s dummy to sidestep Udinese centre back Bram Nuytinck and shoot inside the near post. Correa doubled up on the 68th minute, blasting the ball into the roof of the net with Denzel Dumfries providing a neat assist from the right. Inter held on but only after their keeper and captain Samir Handanovic tipped a shot from Gerard Deulofeu over the bar, with the Spanish forward then having a goal disallowed for offside eight minutes from time. Udinese extended their winless run to eight matches. Elsewhere on Sunday, Serbia attacker Dusan Vlahovic scored a hat-trick to take his goal tally for the season to 10 in 12 games as Fiorentina beat Spezia 3-0.

Milan (AFP) – Zlatan Ibrahimovic described his 150th Serie A goal from a free-kick as an “old age” shot as AC Milan beat Jose Mourinho’s Roma 2-1 on Sunday to remain second on goal difference in the table behind Napoli. The Sweden striker, who turned 40 earlier this month, also thought he had scored his 400th goal in domestic leagues but was denied a second of the encounter with VAR finding offside in the second half. Stefano Pioli’s side finished the game down a man as left-back Theo Hernandez was shown a red card for a shoulder challenge. “Every now and then, I pull a surprise! You must always give it a go, as failure is part of success, so you keep trying,” Ibrahimovic told DAZN about his free-kick clocked at at 101km/h. “It usually goes quicker! At least 200kmh! I think I must be slowing my shot in old age,” he added. Milan were under pressure after Napoli had opened up a three-point gap at the top of the table after claiming the spoils in a 1-0 derby victory over Salernitana

Sociedad back on top of Liga after Basque derby draw Madrid (AFP) – Real Sociedad returned to the top of La Liga on Sunday but their joy was tempered by having to share the points after an injury-time strike for Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao in a 1-1 draw. Alexander Isak gave Sociedad a 58th-minute lead from the penalty spot. But just as they were contemplating opening a three-point advantage over Real Madrid and Sevilla at the top, Bilbao levelled in stoppage time thanks to an Iker Muniain free-kick which deceieved Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro. Earlier Sunday, Yannick Carrasco’s blistering strike set Atletico Madrid on the way to a 3-0 victory over Real Betis, keeping the reigning champions within three points of the leaders. Belgium international Carrasco hammered in the opening goal at the Wanda Metropolitano on 26 minutes before Betis defender German Pezzella bizarrely headed a corner into his own net in the second half. Joao Felix came off the bench to wrap up just a second win in five outings for Atletico, who moved above Betis. They are two points behind Real Madrid and Sevilla and three back from Real Sociedad. “It was definitely the match where we’ve been the most consistent,” said Atletico coach Diego Simeone, forced to watch from the stands after his red card in Thursday’s 2-2 draw at Levante. “We controlled the game at all times and played the way we wanted to play. We played as a team.” Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak palmed away a powerful early attempt from William Carvalho, but the hosts quickly asserted their dominance as Jose Gimenez and Antoine Griezmann forced stops from Claudio Bravo. Carrasco made the breakthrough, collecting a pass from Angel Correa and twisting past Martin Montoya before rifling the ball into the roof of the net. Mario Hermoso saw his header ruled out for offside after half-time in torrential rain, with Stefan Savic nodding straight at Bravo who then saved well from Luis Suarez. But from the resulting corner Pezzella gifted Atletico a second goal when he badly miscued his attempted clearance. Betis had won their last three league matches and a victory would have moved them level at the top, but instead Atletico began a key few days that includes a trip to Liverpool on Wednesday with an assured display. Felix raced onto a through ball in the final 10 minutes to seal the points as the goal was upheld upon review after initially being disallowed for offside.

Madrid (AFP) – Real Sociedad returned to the top of La Liga on Sunday but their joy was tempered by having to share the points after an injury-time strike for Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao in a 1-1 draw. Alexander Isak gave Sociedad a 58th-minute lead from the penalty spot. But just as they were contemplating opening a three-point advantage over Real Madrid and Sevilla at the top, Bilbao levelled in stoppage time thanks to an Iker Muniain free-kick which deceieved Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro. Earlier Sunday, Yannick Carrasco’s blistering strike set Atletico Madrid on the way to a 3-0 victory over Real Betis, keeping the reigning champions within three points of the leaders. Belgium international Carrasco hammered in the opening goal at the Wanda Metropolitano on 26 minutes before Betis defender German Pezzella bizarrely headed a corner into his own net in the second half. Joao Felix came off the bench to wrap up just a second win in five outings for Atletico, who moved above

Ibrahimovic landmark keeps 10-man Milan in touch with Napoli Milan (AFP) – Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored his 150th Serie A goal as AC Milan beat Jose Mourinho’s Roma 2-1 on Sunday to remain second on goal difference in the table behind Napoli. The Sweden striker, who turned 40 earlier this month, also thought he had scored his 400th goal in domestic leagues but was denied a second of the encounter with VAR finding offside in the second half. Stefano Pioli’s side finished the game down a man as left-back Theo Hernandez was shown a red card for a shoulder challenge. Milan were under pressure after Napoli had opened up a three-point gap at the top of the table after claiming the spoils in a 1-0 derby victory over Salernitana. At the Stadio Olimpico, Ibrahimovic broke the deadlock just before the half-hour mark. He drove home a low free kick after Rick Karsdorp’s foul on Rafael Leao. Ibrahimovic believed he had claimed a second, and a fourth for the campaign, but VAR adjudged him to be offside, after 50 minutes. Milan eventually claimed a second as Ivory Coast midfielder Franck Kessie converted from the penalty spot just before the hour mark. The 18-time Italian champions’ hopes of claiming the three points appeared to be dealt a blow with 25 minutes to play as France defender Hernandez was shown a red card for a second bookable offence. They were then given a scare late on as Roma’s Nicolo Zaniolo had an 81st minute header blocked on the line before their former midfielder Stephan El Shaarawy claimed an additional time consolation effort. Earlier, Poland midfielder Piotr Zielinski scored as league leaders Napoli overcame lowly Salernitana. Zielinski claimed his second goal of the season with half an hour left at the Arechi Stadium as both sides finished with 10 men. Napoli were without in-form Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen due to injury, with captain Lorenzo Insigne on the bench. They failed to create a clear first-half chance. “Insigne has a muscular fatigue, he was at risk of getting hurt,” Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti said. “I decided to keep him out, avoiding any risk,” Spalletti added before Thursday’s Europa League trip to Legia Warsaw. Earlier, Joaquin Correa’s slick second-half double earned Inter Milan a 2-0 win over Udinese to consolidate the defending champions’ hold on third place. The Argentina international joined Inter on loan from Lazio in August and made an immediate impact, scoring twice on his debut against Verona. He repeated the feat, after missing three games this season through injury, against Udinese, who reached the interval having survived a seven-shot onslaught from Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella, and a goalmouth scramble. Correa finally got the breakthrough goal on the hour, running through afer Ivan Perisic’s dummy to sidestep Udinese centre back Bram Nuytinck and shoot inside the near post. Correa doubled up on the 68th minute, blasting the ball into the roof of the net with Denzel Dumfries providing a neat assist from the right. Inter held on but only after their keeper and captain Samir Handanovic tipped a shot from Gerard Deulofeu over the bar, with the Spanish forward then having a goal disallowed for offside eight minutes from time. Udinese extended their winless run to eight matches. Elsewhere on Sunday, Serbia attacker Dusan Vlahovic scored a hat-trick to take his goal tally for the season to 10 in 12 games as Fiorentina beat Spezia 3-0.

Milan (AFP) – Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored his 150th Serie A goal as AC Milan beat Jose Mourinho’s Roma 2-1 on Sunday to remain second on goal difference in the table behind Napoli. The Sweden striker, who turned 40 earlier this month, also thought he had scored his 400th goal in domestic leagues but was denied a second of the encounter with VAR finding offside in the second half. Stefano Pioli’s side finished the game down a man as left-back Theo Hernandez was shown a red card for a shoulder challenge. Milan were under pressure after Napoli had opened up a three-point gap at the top of the table after claiming the spoils in a 1-0 derby victory over Salernitana. At the Stadio Olimpico, Ibrahimovic broke the deadlock just before the half-hour mark. He drove home a low free kick after Rick Karsdorp’s foul on Rafael Leao. Ibrahimovic believed he had claimed a second, and a fourth for the campaign, but VAR adjudged him to be offside, after 50 minutes. Milan eventually claimed a second

Zielinski strike keeps Napoli top in tense derby win Milan (AFP) – Poland midfielder Piotr Zielinski scored as Serie A leaders Napoli overcame lowly Salernitana 1-0 away from home on Sunday. Zielinski claimed his second goal of the season with half an hour left at the Arechi Stadium as both sides finished with 10 men. Napoli moved three points clear of second-placed AC Milan as Salernitana remained second from bottom with just two wins this season. Milan can draw level on points if they beat Jose Mourinho’s Roma in the final game of the day. Napoli were without in-form Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen due to injury, with attacker Lorenzo Insigne on the bench, and failed to create a clear first-half chance. Zielinski claimed the crucial goal on 61 minutes as he rifled home after a goalmouth scramble. Salernitana’s Grigoris Kastanos was sent off with 20 minutes left for a rash challenge on Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa. Napoli lost defender Kalidou Koulibaly eight minutes later as the Senegal centre-back was dismissed for denying Nigeria’s Simy a goal-scoring opportunity. Earlier, Joaquin Correa’s slick second-half double earned Inter Milan a 2-0 win over to consolidate the defending champions’ hold on third place. The Argentina international joined Inter on loan from Lazio in August and made an immediate impact, scoring twice on his debut against Verona. He repeated the feat, after missing three games this season through injury, against Udinese, who reached the interval having survived a seven-shot onslaught from Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella, and a goalmouth scramble. “Things weren’t going well for me in the first half today, but I never stop trying,” Correa told Sky Sport Italia. “Now we have to continue along this path, because everyone in the team wants the same thing,” he added. Correa finally got the breakthrough goal on the hour, running through afer Ivan Perisic’s dummy to sidestep Udinese centre back Bram Nuytinck and shoot inside the near post. The visitors should have been further behind when Eden Dzeko was allowed a free run with Udinese assuming, mistakenly, he was offside only for goalkeeper Marco Silvestri to save the point-blank shot. Correa doubled up on the 68th minute, blasting the ball into the roof of the net with Denzel Dumfries providing a neat assist from the right. Inter held on but only after their keeper and captain Samir Handanovic tipped a shot from Gerard Deulofeu over the bar, with the Spanish forward then having a goal disallowed for offside eight minutes from time. Udinese extended their winless run to eight matches. Elsewhere on Sunday, Serbia attacker Dusan Vlahovic scored a hat-trick to take his goal tally for the season to 10 in 12 games as Fiorentina beat Spezia 3-0. Genoa and Venezia drew 0-0 while Polish midfielder Szymon Zurkowski opened his account for the campaign with a 92nd-minute winner to help Empoli edge Sassuolo 2-1.

Milan (AFP) – Poland midfielder Piotr Zielinski scored as Serie A leaders Napoli overcame lowly Salernitana 1-0 away from home on Sunday. Zielinski claimed his second goal of the season with half an hour left at the Arechi Stadium as both sides finished with 10 men. Napoli moved three points clear of second-placed AC Milan as Salernitana remained second from bottom with just two wins this season. Milan can draw level on points if they beat Jose Mourinho’s Roma in the final game of the day. Napoli were without in-form Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen due to injury, with attacker Lorenzo Insigne on the bench, and failed to create a clear first-half chance. Zielinski claimed the crucial goal on 61 minutes as he rifled home after a goalmouth scramble. Salernitana’s Grigoris Kastanos was sent off with 20 minutes left for a rash challenge on Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa. Napoli lost defender Kalidou Koulibaly eight minutes later as the Senegal centre-back was dismissed for denying Nigeri

Delort hits late winner for Nice at Angers Paris (AFP) – Andy Delort smashed home a last-gasp volley to snatch a 2-1 victory for Nice away to Angers as Christophe Galtier’s side moved up to second in Ligue 1 on Sunday. Sofiane Boufal won and converted a penalty to give Angers the lead in the first half, minutes after Delort headed against the post. The Algeria international equalised for Nice on 57 minutes with a deflected strike that looped over Angers goalkeeper Paul Bernardoni. Nice completed a second dramatic comeback win in the space of a week as Delort lashed in from the edge of the area in stoppage time. “It’s a nice goal and particularly at that moment, and it gives us extra confidence,” Delort told Prime Video. The ambitious south coast club owned by Ineos, the group chaired by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, trail leaders Paris Saint-Germain by eight points. Monaco continued their inconsistent run with a 2-0 loss away to a Brest team that had not won a game all season. Bordeaux picked up just their second win this term after coming from two goals down to beat Reims 3-2 thanks to Jimmy Briand’s 95th-minute penalty. Briand, 36, also grabbed the equaliser as he scored in his 17th different French top-flight campaign. Strasbourg thumped Lorient 4-0 and Montpellier defeated Nantes 2-0, while Rennes’ three-match winning run came to an end following a 2-2 draw at Troyes. Marseille, coming off successive draws against PSG and then Nice in midweek, will go third if they beat Clermont in Sunday’s late game.

Paris (AFP) – Andy Delort smashed home a last-gasp volley to snatch a 2-1 victory for Nice away to Angers as Christophe Galtier’s side moved up to second in Ligue 1 on Sunday. Sofiane Boufal won and converted a penalty to give Angers the lead in the first half, minutes after Delort headed against the post. The Algeria international equalised for Nice on 57 minutes with a deflected strike that looped over Angers goalkeeper Paul Bernardoni. Nice completed a second dramatic comeback win in the space of a week as Delort lashed in from the edge of the area in stoppage time. “It’s a nice goal and particularly at that moment, and it gives us extra confidence,” Delort told Prime Video. The ambitious south coast club owned by Ineos, the group chaired by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, trail leaders Paris Saint-Germain by eight points. Monaco continued their inconsistent run with a 2-0 loss away to a Brest team that had not won a game all season. Bordeaux picked up just their second w

West Ham crush 10-man Villa to strengthen top-four position Birmingham (United Kingdom) (AFP) – West Ham underlined their Premier League top-four credentials with a 4-1 win against 10-man Aston Villa on Sunday. Ben Johnson scored early for the visitors only to see Ollie Watkins equalise but the Hammers reclaimed the lead before half-time through Declan Rice. Villa’s task was made all the harder early in the second half when defender Ezri Konsa was dismissed for denying a goalscoring opportunity. Late goals from Pablo Fornals and Jarrod Bowen sealed the three points for David Moyes’ side and condemned Villa to a fourth straight Premier League defeat. The victory lifts David Moyes’ Hammers to 20 points after 10 games — level on points with third-placed Manchester City. West Ham drew first blood in the seventh minute when Rice sprayed a pass out to the right flank for Johnson, who cut inside onto his left foot and curled a low shot into the far corner of the net. Watkins levelled things up in the 34th minute, steering home Emiliano Buendia’s low cross from close range. But Villa’s delight was shortlived as Rice restored the visitors’ lead with a long-range shot that bobbled its way into the back of the net via a touch off the post just four minutes later. Villa were reduced to 10 men in the 50th minute when a VAR review ruled that Konsa had denied Bowen a clear goalscoring opportunity by tripping him on the edge of the penalty area. The Villa defender initially only received a yellow card for the foul. Despite being a man down, the home side came agonisingly close to an equaliser when Lukasz Fabianski got his fingertips to a thumping Watkins header to push it against the bar. West Ham increased their lead when Fornals finished from a tight angle after goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez could only push Bowen’s shot into his path and Bowen himself added a fourth. Earlier, Leeds beat Norwich 2-1 to record just their second league win of the season and climb out of the relegation zone. The sides were locked at 0-0 at Carrow Road at half-time but the game exploded into life in a dramatic four-minute spell after the break. Leeds forward Raphinha broke the deadlock in the 56th minute only for Andrew Omobamidele to head an equaliser from a corner two minutes later. But home cheers turned to despair in the 60th minute when Rodrigo’s low left-footed effort found its way underneath Tim Krul. The win lifts Leeds to 17th in the table, three points clear of the bottom three but Norwich remain winless and are now eight points from safety.

Birmingham (United Kingdom) (AFP) – West Ham underlined their Premier League top-four credentials with a 4-1 win against 10-man Aston Villa on Sunday. Ben Johnson scored early for the visitors only to see Ollie Watkins equalise but the Hammers reclaimed the lead before half-time through Declan Rice. Villa’s task was made all the harder early in the second half when defender Ezri Konsa was dismissed for denying a goalscoring opportunity. Late goals from Pablo Fornals and Jarrod Bowen sealed the three points for David Moyes’ side and condemned Villa to a fourth straight Premier League defeat. The victory lifts David Moyes’ Hammers to 20 points after 10 games — level on points with third-placed Manchester City. West Ham drew first blood in the seventh minute when Rice sprayed a pass out to the right flank for Johnson, who cut inside onto his left foot and curled a low shot into the far corner of the net. Watkins levelled things up in the 34th minute, steering home Emiliano Buendia’

Carrasco helps fire Atletico past Real Betis Madrid (AFP) – Yannick Carrasco’s blistering strike set Atletico Madrid on the way to a 3-0 victory over Real Betis in La Liga on Sunday, keeping the reigning champions within two points of the leaders. Belgium’s Carrasco hammered in the opening goal at the Wanda Metropolitano on 26 minutes before Betis defender German Pezzella bizarrely headed a corner into his own net in the second half. Joao Felix came off the bench to wrap up just a second win in five outings for Atletico, who moved above Betis and stayed in touch with Real Madrid, Sevilla and Real Sociedad, all level on 24 points. Real Sociedad, who have lost only one of their opening 11 games, host Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao later on Sunday. Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak palmed away a powerful early attempt from William Carvalho, but the hosts quickly asserted their dominance as Jose Gimenez and Antoine Griezmann forced stops from Claudio Bravo. Carrasco made the breakthrough, collecting a pass from Angel Correa and twisting past Martin Montoya before rifling the ball into the roof of the net. Mario Hermoso saw his header ruled out for offside after half-time in torrential rain, with Stefan Savic nodding straight at Bravo who then saved well from Luis Suarez. But from the resulting corner Pezzella gifted Atletico a second goal when he badly miscued his attempted clearance. Betis had won their last three league matches and a victory would move them level at the top, but instead Atletico began a key few days that includes a trip to Liverpool on Wednesday with an assured display. Felix raced onto a through ball in the final 10 minutes to seal the points and the goal was upheld upon review after initially being disallowed for offside.

Madrid (AFP) – Yannick Carrasco’s blistering strike set Atletico Madrid on the way to a 3-0 victory over Real Betis in La Liga on Sunday, keeping the reigning champions within two points of the leaders. Belgium’s Carrasco hammered in the opening goal at the Wanda Metropolitano on 26 minutes before Betis defender German Pezzella bizarrely headed a corner into his own net in the second half. Joao Felix came off the bench to wrap up just a second win in five outings for Atletico, who moved above Betis and stayed in touch with Real Madrid, Sevilla and Real Sociedad, all level on 24 points. Real Sociedad, who have lost only one of their opening 11 games, host Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao later on Sunday. Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak palmed away a powerful early attempt from William Carvalho, but the hosts quickly asserted their dominance as Jose Gimenez and Antoine Griezmann forced stops from Claudio Bravo. Carrasco made the breakthrough, collecting a pass from Angel Correa and twis

Correa at the double as Inter down Udinese Milan (AFP) – Joaquin Correa’s slick second-half double earned Inter Milan a 2-0 win over Udinese in Serie A on Sunday to consolidate the defending champion’s hold on third place. The Argentina international joined Inter on loan from Lazio in August and made an immediate impact, scoring twice on his debut against Verona. And he repeated the feat against Udinese, who reached the interval having survived a seven-shot onslaught from Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella, and a goalmouth scramble. Correa finally got the breakthrough goal on the hour, running through afer Ivan Perisic’s dummy to sidestep Udinese’s centre back Bram Nuytinck and shoot inside the near post. The visitors should have been further behind when Eden Dzeko was allowed a free run with Udinese assuming, mistakenly, he was offside only for Udinese keeper Marco Silvestri to save the point-blank shot. Correa doubled up on the 68th minute, blasting the ball into the roof of the net with Denzel Dumfries providing a neat assist from the right. Inter held on but only after their keeper and captain Samir Handanovic tipped a shot from Gerard Deulofeu over the bar, with the Spanish forward then having a goal disallowed for offside eight minutes from time. Simone Inzaghi’s side moved to within four points of leaders Napoli, who are at Salernitana, and AC Milan, who face Roma, later on Sunday. Udinese extended their winless run to eight matches.

Milan (AFP) – Joaquin Correa’s slick second-half double earned Inter Milan a 2-0 win over Udinese in Serie A on Sunday to consolidate the defending champion’s hold on third place. The Argentina international joined Inter on loan from Lazio in August and made an immediate impact, scoring twice on his debut against Verona. And he repeated the feat against Udinese, who reached the interval having survived a seven-shot onslaught from Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella, and a goalmouth scramble. Correa finally got the breakthrough goal on the hour, running through afer Ivan Perisic’s dummy to sidestep Udinese’s centre back Bram Nuytinck and shoot inside the near post. The visitors should have been further behind when Eden Dzeko was allowed a free run with Udinese assuming, mistakenly, he was offside only for Udinese keeper Marco Silvestri to save the point-blank shot. Correa doubled up on the 68th minute, blasting the ball into the roof of the net with Denzel Dumfries providing a neat as

Injured Pique to miss Barcelona’s visit to Kiev Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona centre-back Gerard Pique will miss Tuesday’s crucial Champions League clash against Dynamo Kiev with a calf injury, the club said on Sunday. “Tests this morning confirmed first-team player Gerard Pique has a right calf strain and will be out for the forseeable future,” the club said on their web site. The statement did not say how long Pique was expected to be out. Pique limped off in the 70th minute on Saturday as Barcelona drew 1-1 at home against Alaves in La Liga in the team’s first outing since the sacking of coach Ronald Koeman. He was replaced by Clement Lenglet. The result left Barcelona ninth in the table. Barcelona are third in Champions League Group E after losing their first two games 3-0 to Bayern Munich and Benfica and then beating Kiev 1-0, with a goal from Pique, at the Camp Nou. They have three points, one behind Benfica.

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona centre-back Gerard Pique will miss Tuesday’s crucial Champions League clash against Dynamo Kiev with a calf injury, the club said on Sunday. “Tests this morning confirmed first-team player Gerard Pique has a right calf strain and will be out for the forseeable future,” the club said on their web site. The statement did not say how long Pique was expected to be out. Pique limped off in the 70th minute on Saturday as Barcelona drew 1-1 at home against Alaves in La Liga in the team’s first outing since the sacking of coach Ronald Koeman. He was replaced by Clement Lenglet. The result left Barcelona ninth in the table. Barcelona are third in Champions League Group E after losing their first two games 3-0 to Bayern Munich and Benfica and then beating Kiev 1-0, with a goal from Pique, at the Camp Nou. They have three points, one behind Benfica. from World Soccer Talk https://ift.tt/3vZ5PCk

Where to find Aston Villa vs. West Ham on TV and streaming If you’re trying to find out how you can watch Aston Villa vs. West Ham on US TV in the Premier League, you’ve come to the right place. For viewers in the US, Aston Villa vs. West Ham will be shown on TV and streaming (more details below). Match: Aston Villa vs. West Ham Kickoff: Sunday, 12:30pm ET Looking to watch Aston Villa vs. West Ham online from your work, home or on the go? If you live in the USA, there are several options to catch all the action. We Recommend: US Only. Here are all of the details of where you can watch it on television and via legal streaming: Who: Aston Villa vs. West Ham What: Premier League When: Game kicks off at 12:30pm ET / 9:30am PT; Sunday, October 31, 2021 Where: Live on NBCSN, Telemundo, fuboTV, Hulu Live and Sling Blue (free trial) With fuboTV, you can watch Aston Villa vs. West Ham and tons more Premier League games with a 7-day trial. With the legal streaming service, you can watch the game on your computer, smartphone, tablet, Roku, Apple TV or hook it up to your TV with Google Chromecast. Now with fuboTV, you can stream NBCSN, ESPN, ESPN2, CBS, CBS Sports Network, FS1, FS2, beIN SPORTS, beIN SPORTS en Español, beIN SPORTS Connect, beIN SPORTS XTRA, NBC (in select cities), CNBC, USA, FOX (in select cities), FOX Soccer Plus, FOX Deportes, Telemundo, Universo, Univision, TUDN, UniMas and Galavision. Plus fuboTV, the legal streaming service, also streams Liga MX, World Cup, Women’s World Cup, MLS, UEFA Champions League (in Spanish), Europa League (in Spanish), Primeira Liga, Ligue Un, World Cup qualifiers, NWSL, select USMNT games, select USWNT games, select Mexico games, select England games and more. The fuboTV app is available for Windows PC, Mac, Apple iPhones, Android phones, Amazon Fire TV, Android Mobile, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Hisense TVs, iOS devices, LG TVs, Samsung Smart TVs, Vizio Smartcast TVs and Xbox One. Courtesy of World Soccer Talk, download a complimentary copy of The Ultimate Soccer TV And Streaming Guide, which features details on where to watch all of the leagues from around the world on US TV and streaming. SEE MORE: Schedule of Premier League games on US TV and streaming To find out when soccer games are on, download the free Soccer TV Schedules App which includes listings of all of the live soccer matches available in the United States (available on Apple iOS devices and Android devices).

If you’re trying to find out how you can watch Aston Villa vs. West Ham on US TV in the Premier League, you’ve come to the right place. For viewers in the US, Aston Villa vs. West Ham will be shown on TV and streaming (more details below). Match: Aston Villa vs. West Ham Kickoff: Sunday, 12:30pm ET Looking to watch Aston Villa vs. West Ham online from your work, home or on the go? If you live in the USA, there are several options to catch all the action. We Recommend: US Only. Here are all of the details of where you can watch it on television and via legal streaming: Who: Aston Villa vs. West Ham What: Premier League When: Game kicks off at 12:30pm ET / 9:30am PT; Sunday, October 31, 2021 Where: Live on NBCSN, Telemundo, fuboTV , Hulu Live and Sling Blue (free trial) With fuboTV , you can watch Aston Villa vs. West Ham and tons more Premier League games with a 7-day trial. With the legal streaming service, you can watch the game on your

Sergio Aguero taken to hospital after breathing problems Madrid (AFP) – Sergio Aguero was taken to hospital after suffering from breathing problems during Barcelona’s 1-1 draw with Alaves on Saturday. Aguero, 33, was forced off in the 41st minute at Camp Nou after he went down clutching his chest. It was not clear what caused the problem. He received treatment on the ground for several minutes and a stretcher was brought out, although the Argentinian was able to walk off the pitch. “Aguero reported chest discomfort and has been admitted to the hospital for a cardiac exam,” Barcelona confirmed in a statement after the match. Barca’s interim manager Sergi Barjuan said: “I asked him and he told me he was dizzy. I was told he went to hospital. I don’t know anything else.” Memphis Depay opened the scoring for Barcelona in the 49th minute but Alaves equalised in the 52nd after Luis Rioja dribbled through. Barca stay ninth in La Liga.

Madrid (AFP) – Sergio Aguero was taken to hospital after suffering from breathing problems during Barcelona’s 1-1 draw with Alaves on Saturday. Aguero, 33, was forced off in the 41st minute at Camp Nou after he went down clutching his chest. It was not clear what caused the problem. He received treatment on the ground for several minutes and a stretcher was brought out, although the Argentinian was able to walk off the pitch. “Aguero reported chest discomfort and has been admitted to the hospital for a cardiac exam,” Barcelona confirmed in a statement after the match. Barca’s interim manager Sergi Barjuan said: “I asked him and he told me he was dizzy. I was told he went to hospital. I don’t know anything else.” Memphis Depay opened the scoring for Barcelona in the 49th minute but Alaves equalised in the 52nd after Luis Rioja dribbled through. Barca stay ninth in La Liga. from World Soccer Talk https://ift.tt/3brMDUo

Solskjaer’s tactical tweaks pay off as Man Utd return to winning ways London (AFP) – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took Manchester United south to play Tottenham with his job on the line but lives to fight another day after his decisions paid off handsomely in a 3-0 win. The pressure on the Norwegian was intense after last week’s 5-0 horror show against Liverpool, in which Jurgen Klopp’s men embarrassed their historic rivals. United travelled to London for Saturday’s game after taking just one point from a possible 12 to fall well off the pace in the Premier League. AFP looks at three talking points after the win against Spurs lifted United back within touching distance of the top four. Veteran strike force Solskjaer chose to pair Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani up front at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, selecting a strike force with a combined age of 70. It was the first time they had started together. Young guns Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood were sacrificed to make way for the veteran double act, potentially depriving United of thrust down the flanks. But Ronaldo and Cavani both got on the scoresheet and proved a constant headache for the Spurs defence. Solskjaer said it was the oldest team he had picked for United, adding he had decided it was time to bank on experience. “The old men led from the front,” he told Sky Sports. “They play well together. They have loads of respect for each other. The work-rate and quality they put in is second to none.” Steady Varane United’s defending at home against Liverpool was catastrophic, summed up by an incident in which Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw collided in the lead-up to Liverpool’s second goal. Solskjaer chose to bring back France defender Raphael Varane against Spurs for his first game for the club since October 2, switching to a central back three, with Shaw and Aaron Wan-Bissaka pushing forward. “Raphael Varane is a top player,” Solskjaer told the BBC. “He reads the game well. He’s quick and so experienced. To get him back is massive for us.” United looked calm and assured at the back and goalkeeper David de Gea did not have a single save to make as they recorded just their second clean sheet of the season in all competitions. ‘Man of the match’ McTominay Ronaldo was named man of the match after he scored one goal and created another for Cavani but Solskjaer said Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay was his pick as the standout player. McTominay and Fred were bypassed by Liverpool’s quicksilver attackers last week but established control in London as part of a midfield four and provided a platform for the men up front. “Man of the match for me, by a mile,” said the United boss. “That’s the Scott we have seen a few times before. He’s had his injury, he’s had his operation (on a groin injury) this season but today I thought he was absolutely brilliant. “He won his tackles, drove forward, kept the ball simple, switched play, headed away a few set-plays. So, absolutely top.”

London (AFP) – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took Manchester United south to play Tottenham with his job on the line but lives to fight another day after his decisions paid off handsomely in a 3-0 win. The pressure on the Norwegian was intense after last week’s 5-0 horror show against Liverpool, in which Jurgen Klopp’s men embarrassed their historic rivals. United travelled to London for Saturday’s game after taking just one point from a possible 12 to fall well off the pace in the Premier League. AFP looks at three talking points after the win against Spurs lifted United back within touching distance of the top four. Veteran strike force Solskjaer chose to pair Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani up front at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, selecting a strike force with a combined age of 70. It was the first time they had started together. Young guns Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood were sacrificed to make way for the veteran double act, potentially depriving United of thrust down the

Barca held by Alaves in first game after Koeman dismissal Madrid (AFP) – Barcelona dropped more points in La Liga after failing to beat Alaves on Saturday as their first game since the sacking of Ronald Koeman ended in a disappointing 1-1 draw at Camp Nou. Xavi Hernandez is expected to be appointed Koeman’s successor this week but with the details of his move still to be agreed with Qatari side Al Sadd, Barca B coach Sergi Barjuan has been put in temporary charge. Yet the removal of Koeman, and even the prospect of Xavi, produced no obvious uplift as a superb second-half strike from Memphis Depay was quickly cancelled out by an equally impressive run and finish from Alaves’ Luis Rioja. After three league games without a win, Barcelona are eight points adrift of leaders Real Madrid, who earlier defeated Elche 2-1 thanks to two goals from Vinicius Junior and aided by a red card for Elche’s Raul Guti. Even more worrying for Barca will be the gap behind the top four is five points while attendances suggest the team’s form is creating a sense of apathy amongst supporters, with only 37,238 inside the 99,000 Camp Nou. There were also injury concerns ahead of Tuesday’s visit to Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League, which could prove pivotal to Barcelona’s hopes of reaching the knock-out stage. Gerard Pique had to go off in the last 20 minutes while Sergio Aguero departed in the first half after the striker appeared to suffer from breathing problems. Whether Barjuan is still in charge for the trip to Kiev remains to be seen but club president Joan Laporta suggested that is the current plan, with Xavi, or the next coach, perhaps taking over for next weekend’s game against Celta Vigo or during the international break. Barjuan admitted on Friday that it is “difficult to change things in a short time” but also said the team’s style, a key factor in Koeman’s dismissal, is “non-negotiable”. But while the first half an hour was perhaps slightly more purposeful, Barcelona still struggled for chances and their defence was beaten too easily for Rioja’s equaliser. For all the talk about style and possession, Depay’s opener was a thunderbolt out of the blue. Jordi Alba played inside and Depay opened up his body before curling the ball into the top right-hand corner. But Barca’s lead lasted less than three minutes as Alaves equalised with another superb goal, Rioja dancing past three Barca defenders, latching onto a sublime flick from Joselu, before rounding Marc-Andre ter Stegen and finishing. Depay was slipped through by Gavi and Nico Gonzalez but hit the post and then Antonio Sivera as Alaves held on for a hard-fought point. – Vinicius again key for Madrid – Earlier, Vinicius’ sensational start to the season continued as he scored twice in Madrid’s victory over Elche to ensure the rested Karim Benzema was not missed. Vinicius had already given Madrid the lead when Elche’s Guti was sent off in the 63rd minute and he added a second soon after with a superb chipped finish into the corner. Madrid made life difficult for themselves late on when a Casemiro mistake allowed Pere Milla to pull a goal back but Elche’s brief hope of a comeback came to nothing. “We were very practical,” said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. “After only two days rest it’s not possible to play with intensity and energy. We played with a low block and tried to find opportunities. Fortunately we got the three points.” Benzema’s resurgence for France means Madrid no longer have their chief goalscorer all to themselves and after 17 games played already this term, Ancelotti opted to leave the striker at home. It meant a surprise start for Mariano Diaz but it was Vinicius who filled the void, scoring his eighth and ninth goals of the season to continue an excellent run of form. The 21-year-old Brazilian has long been circled as one of Madrid’s most exciting talents but he has found a different level under Ancelotti. “I haven’t done anything,” Ancelotti said. “I just try to give him confidence. I am not a magician.”

Madrid (AFP) – Barcelona dropped more points in La Liga after failing to beat Alaves on Saturday as their first game since the sacking of Ronald Koeman ended in a disappointing 1-1 draw at Camp Nou. Xavi Hernandez is expected to be appointed Koeman’s successor this week but with the details of his move still to be agreed with Qatari side Al Sadd, Barca B coach Sergi Barjuan has been put in temporary charge. Yet the removal of Koeman, and even the prospect of Xavi, produced no obvious uplift as a superb second-half strike from Memphis Depay was quickly cancelled out by an equally impressive run and finish from Alaves’ Luis Rioja. After three league games without a win, Barcelona are eight points adrift of leaders Real Madrid, who earlier defeated Elche 2-1 thanks to two goals from Vinicius Junior and aided by a red card for Elche’s Raul Guti. Even more worrying for Barca will be the gap behind the top four is five points while attendances suggest the team’s form is creating a sense

‘Many things wrong’ admits Guardiola as Palace shock Man City Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Pep Guardiola admitted Manchester City had a day to forget as Crystal Palace inflicted the English champions’ first home defeat of the season with a 2-0 win at the Etihad. City trailed to Wilfried Zaha’s early opener before losing defender Aymeric Laporte to a red card for hauling down the Ivorian as he threatened to break clear. Gabriel Jesus had an equaliser for the 10 men ruled out for offside after a VAR review in the second period before Conor Gallagher secured a famous win for the Eagles with two minutes remaining. City are now five points behind Premier League leaders Chelsea and face Manchester United in a derby at Old Trafford next weekend. “When you play 50 minutes 10 against 11, it is difficult for a team like us because you need the process and to do everything right,” said Guardiola. “The players showed character and tried, but unfortunately many, many things went wrong and we lost the game.” City players were furious with the officiating as on top of Laporte’s dubious dismissal and the disallowed goal, Phil Foden saw a penalty appeal waved away in the second half. But Guardiola refused to blame the referee as his 200th Premier League game in charge ended in defeat. “It could be a yellow or red,” he added on the Laporte incident. “It depends on the referee and what he thinks. The goal, I imagine the linesman says he’s offside. We didn’t lose because of that.” Victory was just Palace’s second since Patrick Vieira took charge as they moved five points clear of the relegation zone. “We worked hard and when you come to a place like City and you don’t concede a goal and you take your chances that’s really good,” said Vieira.

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Pep Guardiola admitted Manchester City had a day to forget as Crystal Palace inflicted the English champions’ first home defeat of the season with a 2-0 win at the Etihad. City trailed to Wilfried Zaha’s early opener before losing defender Aymeric Laporte to a red card for hauling down the Ivorian as he threatened to break clear. Gabriel Jesus had an equaliser for the 10 men ruled out for offside after a VAR review in the second period before Conor Gallagher secured a famous win for the Eagles with two minutes remaining. City are now five points behind Premier League leaders Chelsea and face Manchester United in a derby at Old Trafford next weekend. “When you play 50 minutes 10 against 11, it is difficult for a team like us because you need the process and to do everything right,” said Guardiola. “The players showed character and tried, but unfortunately many, many things went wrong and we lost the game.” City players were furious with the off

Ronaldo and Cavani’s experience key to Man Utd response – Solskjaer London (AFP) – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said the experience of Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani was key to Manchester United’s 3-0 win at Tottenham on Saturday as they bounced back from a humiliating 5-0 thrashing by Liverpool six days ago. After a week of intense speculation over his future, Solskjaer got all his major calls right as Ronaldo and Cavani, at a combined age of 70, both scored after being paired up front together for the first time. A switch to a back three, aided by the return of Raphael Varane from injury, also helped Solskjaer’s men register just a second clean sheet in 22 games. “We’ve built this performance on hard work, discipline and keeping the ball away from our goal,” said Solskjaer. “We worked on this this week. The boys were brilliant, they took it on board. “Raphael Varane is a top player. He reads the game well. He’s quick and so experienced. To get him back is massive for us.” The signings of Ronaldo, Varane and Jadon Sancho were expected to turn United into title challengers this season. Instead, they are eight points adrift of Premier League leaders Chelsea after 10 games, but did move up to fifth thanks to a first league win in five games. The impact of Ronaldo’s arrival on the balance of the team has been questioned. But there is little doubting the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s finishing as he volleyed in his seventh goal in 11 games since returning to the club, to settle United’s nerves. Ronaldo then turned provider for Cavani to double United’s lead with a deft chip over Hugo Lloris in the second period. “The experience came through,” said Solskjaer. “I was told that’s the oldest team I’ve picked for Man Utd and it was time for it. “I’ve been here three years and Tuesday’s training performance by Edinson Cavani was the best training performance anyone has put in here. “They played well together, they have loads of respect for each other. We have loads of talented players but they have to learn from those two. The work rate they put in, the quality they put in is second to none.” However, Solskjaer was keen to stress that one good performance will not erase the stain of last weekend’s record home defeat to their bitter rivals. “That’s always going to be in the history books – one of the darkest days. A dark spot on our CV,” added Solskjaer. “We’ve got a hard week again. Champions League game then (Manchester) City. We’ve got to digest this one and be ready for Tuesday (against Atalanta).”

London (AFP) – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said the experience of Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani was key to Manchester United’s 3-0 win at Tottenham on Saturday as they bounced back from a humiliating 5-0 thrashing by Liverpool six days ago. After a week of intense speculation over his future, Solskjaer got all his major calls right as Ronaldo and Cavani, at a combined age of 70, both scored after being paired up front together for the first time. A switch to a back three, aided by the return of Raphael Varane from injury, also helped Solskjaer’s men register just a second clean sheet in 22 games. “We’ve built this performance on hard work, discipline and keeping the ball away from our goal,” said Solskjaer. “We worked on this this week. The boys were brilliant, they took it on board. “Raphael Varane is a top player. He reads the game well. He’s quick and so experienced. To get him back is massive for us.” The signings of Ronaldo, Varane and Jadon Sancho were expected to turn Uni

Man Utd bounce back, Chelsea extend lead after Liverpool, Man City slips London (AFP) – Manchester United bounced back with a 3-0 win at Tottenham on Saturday as Chelsea took advantage of stumbles by Liverpool and Manchester City to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League to three points. Liverpool blew at 2-0 lead at Anfield as Brighton battled back to earn a deserved 2-2 draw. City are now five points off the top after Pep Guardiola’s 10 men were beaten 2-0 by Crystal Palace at the Etihad. United were humiliated 5-0 at Old Trafford by Liverpool last weekend to leave manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hanging on to his job. But the Norwegian’s decision to switch to a back three and start with a veteran strike pairing of Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani paid off. Ronaldo’s sumptuous volley from Bruno Fernandes’ cross settled United’s nerves six minutes before half-time. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner then turned provider for Cavani to dink the ball over Hugo Lloris. Marcus Rashford came off the bench to round off a badly-needed three points and performance for Solskjaer’s men, who registered just a second clean sheet in 22 games. Chelsea extended their lead at the top to three points as Reece James scored twice in a 3-0 win at Newcastle. The Magpies are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Chelsea and City’s success following huge investment from foreign owners. However, Saudi-owned Newcastle have a battle just to remain in the top flight as they remain rooted in the bottom three without a league win this season. All the goals arrived in the second-half as James produced two stunning finishes from right wing-back before Jorginho’s penalty rounded off the scoring. “It will never be the moment when we celebrate results on the other pitches,” said Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel. “It’s first of all far too early and second, we want to focus on ourselves.” – ‘It feels like defeat’ – Liverpool stretched their unbeaten run to 24 games in all competitions, but will feel two points slipped away after another flying start. “It feels like a defeat,” said Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. “In the second-half, we were not good enough. The body language I didn’t like it all.” Mohamed Salah’s scoring streak came to an end at 10 games, but the Egyptian set up the opener as his pass was swept into the far corner by Jordan Henderson. Sadio Mane doubled the home side’s advantage with a back post header before the Senegalese had another goal ruled out for handball after he caught Brighton goalkeeper Robert Sanchez in possession. The Seagulls grabbed a lifeline before half-time when Enock Mwepu’s cross flew over the stranded Alisson Becker. Brighton snatched a point when Leandro Trossard rounded off a brilliant team move 25 minutes from time. – City slump – City’s first home defeat of the season rounded off a perfect day for the Chelsea in the title race. Wilfried Zaha punished slack defending from Ruben Dias and Aymeric Laporte to fire into the far corner after six minutes. Laporte was then sent off for pulling down Zaha as the last man in first-half stoppage time. Gabriel Jesus thought he had equalised midway through the second half only for the goal to be ruled out for offside against Phil Foden. The 10 men were then caught out two minutes from time when Conor Gallagher smashed high past Ederson. “It went wrong in many, many things and we lose the game,” said Guardiola. Arsenal are up to sixth after a fast start and some inspired goalkeeping from Aaron Ramsdale earned the Gunners a 2-0 win at Leicester. Gabriel and Emile Smith Rowe struck inside the opening 18 minutes for the visitors at the King Power. But they relied on Ramsdale thereafter as the England international made a miraculous save from James Maddison among a string of impressive stops. Burnley registered their first win of the season in style with a 3-1 victory over Brentford to move out of the bottom three. Southampton opened up a four-point cushion over the relegation zone thanks to Che Adams’ strike in a 1-0 win at Watford.

London (AFP) – Manchester United bounced back with a 3-0 win at Tottenham on Saturday as Chelsea took advantage of stumbles by Liverpool and Manchester City to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League to three points. Liverpool blew at 2-0 lead at Anfield as Brighton battled back to earn a deserved 2-2 draw. City are now five points off the top after Pep Guardiola’s 10 men were beaten 2-0 by Crystal Palace at the Etihad. United were humiliated 5-0 at Old Trafford by Liverpool last weekend to leave manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hanging on to his job. But the Norwegian’s decision to switch to a back three and start with a veteran strike pairing of Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani paid off. Ronaldo’s sumptuous volley from Bruno Fernandes’ cross settled United’s nerves six minutes before half-time. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner then turned provider for Cavani to dink the ball over Hugo Lloris. Marcus Rashford came off the bench to round off a badly-needed three poin

Ronaldo buys time for Solskjaer as Man Utd thump Spurs London (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo came to the rescue of beleaguered Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on Saturday as the visitors thumped Tottenham 3-0 to restore pride after their humiliation by Liverpool. United arrived in London smarting from their 5-0 home defeat by their fiercest rivals last week, which led to a storm of speculation over the future of the Norwegian boss. But a sublime first-half strike by Ronaldo, a clever finish from Edinson Cavani and a late Marcus Rashford goal lifted the visitors to fifth in the table, just three points behind third-placed Manchester City. Solskjaer paired veteran forwards Ronaldo and Cavani up front for the first time, with Mason Greenwood and Rashford missing out. He also opted for a central back three, bringing in the returning Raphael Varane alongside Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof. The game took time to catch fire in front of a crowd of more than 60,000, with clear-cut openings at a premium. Son Heung-min fired over from close range for Spurs after Lucas Moura found him on the left with a dinked ball and moments later Cavani headed wide from a Bruno Fernandes cross. Tottenham had the ball in the net just before the half-hour mark but Cristian Romero’s effort was ruled out for offside, with the flag raised when Spurs players were already celebrating. United midfielder Fred hit a stinging drive that was well kept out by a diving Hugo Lloris and as the game opened up Aaron Wan-Bissaka produced a superbly timed tackle to deny Son, who was through on goal. But it was United who broke the deadlock in the 39th minute. Ronaldo peeled off Ben Davies at the back post to get on the end of Fernandes’ cross, hitting a fine first-time volley across goal and into the far corner. Solskjaer responded with a muted celebration, putting his finger into the air. Son flashed wide early in the second half after Moura picked up a mishit clearance from United goalkeeper David de Gea. Ronaldo thought he had scored a second when he lashed the ball into the net after running onto a through ball from Scott McTominay but he was flagged offside as he wheeled away in celebration. Nine minutes after half time Spurs boss Nuno Espirito Santo brought on Steven Bergwijn to replace Moura to loud boos from the home fans and chants of “You don’t know what you’re doing”. But despite Spurs pressure, United doubled their lead in the 64th minute as Ronaldo turned provider, feeding Cavani, who lifted the ball over Lloris to spark delirious celebrations among the United fans. Substitute Rashford added gloss to the scoreline with four minutes to go, cooly finishing past Lloris as more boos rang around the stadium. While Solskjaer has earned himself some breathing space, the pressure will ratchet up on Nuno, who has now tasted defeat in five of his 10 Premier League games since taking charge. Tottenham did not manage a single shot on goal and Harry Kane, who was largely anonymous, has managed just one Premier League goal this campaign.

London (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo came to the rescue of beleaguered Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on Saturday as the visitors thumped Tottenham 3-0 to restore pride after their humiliation by Liverpool. United arrived in London smarting from their 5-0 home defeat by their fiercest rivals last week, which led to a storm of speculation over the future of the Norwegian boss. But a sublime first-half strike by Ronaldo, a clever finish from Edinson Cavani and a late Marcus Rashford goal lifted the visitors to fifth in the table, just three points behind third-placed Manchester City. Solskjaer paired veteran forwards Ronaldo and Cavani up front for the first time, with Mason Greenwood and Rashford missing out. He also opted for a central back three, bringing in the returning Raphael Varane alongside Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof. The game took time to catch fire in front of a crowd of more than 60,000, with clear-cut openings at a premium. Son Heung-min fired over

Verona’s in-form Simeone condemns Juve to another loss Milan (AFP) – Giovanni Simeone struck twice as Verona beat Juventus 2-1 in Serie A on Saturday to hand Massimiliano’s struggling team a second loss in four days. Simeone, the son of Atletico Madrid coach Diego, put Verona ahead when he turned in a rebound at the Stadio Bentegodi on 11 minutes. The Argentine added a quick-fire second with a sublime curling effort from 20 metres, giving him six goals in his past two starts having scored four times against Lazio last weekend. Paulo Dybala hit the crossbar just before half-time for a Juve side missing the injured Federico Chiesa, but the visitors pulled a goal back with 10 minutes left when Weston McKennie powered in his second in as many games. Verona goalkeeper Lorenzo Montipo produced a brilliant stop to deny Paulo Dybala an equaliser in the final minute. After recovering from a dreadful start to the season with four straight wins, Juve have picked up just one point from three matches and sit ninth, 13 points behind Napoli and AC Milan at the top. Verona have won all four home games since the appointment of former Juve assistant Igor Tudor in mid-September. The ex-Croatia international served as deputy to Andrea Pirlo in Turin last season. Atalanta scored in added time at the end of each half to salvage a 2-2 home draw against Lazio that prevented either team clambering into the top four. Duvan Zapata scored with the last kick of the first half to cancel out an early goal by Pedro. Then Marten de Roon struck in the fourth minute of second-half added time to level after Ciro Immobile had scored a goal that made him Lazio’s joint all-time leading scorer. After the opening game of the weekend, Atalanta stayed fifth, level on points with fourth-placed Roma. Lazio remained sixth, a point behind. Pedro gave the visitors the lead in the 18th minute when he drove in a rebound from a close-range shot by Immobile. At the end of the half, Zapata shrugged off Adam Marusic and powered in a shot that Pepe Reina reached but could not save. In the 74th minute, substitute Toma Basic found Immobile in the middle of the box and the striker put the ball over the diving Juan Musso. It was Immobile’s league-leading ninth goal of the season and also the 31-year-old’s 159th for Lazio, who he joined from Sevilla in 2016. That puts him level with World Cup-winning striker Silvio Piola who played for the club from 1934-43 before finishing World War II at Torino and ending his 25-year career at Juventus and Novara.

Milan (AFP) – Giovanni Simeone struck twice as Verona beat Juventus 2-1 in Serie A on Saturday to hand Massimiliano’s struggling team a second loss in four days. Simeone, the son of Atletico Madrid coach Diego, put Verona ahead when he turned in a rebound at the Stadio Bentegodi on 11 minutes. The Argentine added a quick-fire second with a sublime curling effort from 20 metres, giving him six goals in his past two starts having scored four times against Lazio last weekend. Paulo Dybala hit the crossbar just before half-time for a Juve side missing the injured Federico Chiesa, but the visitors pulled a goal back with 10 minutes left when Weston McKennie powered in his second in as many games. Verona goalkeeper Lorenzo Montipo produced a brilliant stop to deny Paulo Dybala an equaliser in the final minute. After recovering from a dreadful start to the season with four straight wins, Juve have picked up just one point from three matches and sit ninth, 13 points behind Napoli and AC

Chelsea take advantage of Man City shock, Liverpool slip London (AFP) – Chelsea extended their lead at the top of the Premier League to three points as Reece James scored twice in a 3-0 win at Newcastle while Liverpool and Manchester City stumbled at home in the title race on Saturday. Liverpool blew at 2-0 lead at Anfield as Brighton battled back to earn a deserved 2-2 draw. City are now five points off the top after Pep Guardiola’s 10 men were beaten 2-0 by Crystal Palace at the Etihad. “It will never be the moment when we celebrate results on the other pitches,” said Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel. “It’s first of all far too early and second, we want to focus on ourselves. If you think that we are even happier now (because of the other results), absolutely this is not true.” Manchester United return to action for the first time since their 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Liverpool later on Saturday when they travel to Tottenham. Newcastle are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Chelsea and City’s success following huge investment from foreign owners. However, the Saudi-owned Magpies have a battle just to remain in the top flight as they remain rooted in the bottom three without a league win this season. Chelsea were without the injured Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Mason Mount, but the European champions still had far too much class at St James’ Park. James produced two stunning finishes from right wing-back before Jorginho’s penalty rounded off the scoring. – ‘It feels like a defeat’ – Liverpool stretched their unbeaten run to 24 games in all competitions, but will feel two points slipped away after another flying start. “It feels like a defeat,” said Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. “It’s not only because we were 2-0 up and didn’t win, it’s because the game I saw, we scored two of the most beautiful goals I’ve ever seen us score, which were disallowed.” Mohamed Salah’s scoring streak came to an end at 10 games, but the Egyptian set up the opener as his pass was swept into the far corner by Jordan Henderson. Sadio Mane doubled the home side’s advantage with a back post header before the Senegalese had another goal ruled out for handball after he caught Brighton goalkeeper Robert Sanchez in possession. The Seagulls grabbed a lifeline before half-time when Enock Mwepu’s cross flew over the stranded Alisson Becker. Salah then saw another goal ruled out for offside. Brighton snatched a point after the break when Leandro Trossard rounded off a brilliant team move 25 minutes from time. – City slump to shock defeat – City’s first home defeat of the season rounded off a perfect day for the Chelsea in the title race. Wilfried Zaha punished slack defending from Ruben Dias and Aymeric Laporte to fire into the far corner after six minutes. Laporte was then sent off for pulling down Zaha as the last man in first-half stoppage time. Gabriel Jesus thought he had equalised midway through the second half only for the goal to be ruled out for offside against Phil Foden. The 10 men were then caught out two minutes from time when Conor Gallagher smashed high past Ederson. Arsenal are up to fifth after a fast start and some inspired goalkeeping from Aaron Ramsdale earned the Gunners a 2-0 win at Leicester. Gabriel and Emile Smith Rowe struck inside the opening 18 minutes for the visitors at the King Power. But they relied on Ramsdale thereafter as the England international made a miraculous save from James Maddison among a string of impressive stops. “When I saw the ball leaving Maddison’s foot, I said, ‘Goal’. So I don’t know how it happened,” said Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. Burnley registered their first win of the season in style with a 3-1 victory over Brentford to move out of the bottom three. Southampton opened up a four-point cushion over the relegation zone thanks to Che Adams’ strike in a 1-0 win at Watford.

London (AFP) – Chelsea extended their lead at the top of the Premier League to three points as Reece James scored twice in a 3-0 win at Newcastle while Liverpool and Manchester City stumbled at home in the title race on Saturday. Liverpool blew at 2-0 lead at Anfield as Brighton battled back to earn a deserved 2-2 draw. City are now five points off the top after Pep Guardiola’s 10 men were beaten 2-0 by Crystal Palace at the Etihad. “It will never be the moment when we celebrate results on the other pitches,” said Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel. “It’s first of all far too early and second, we want to focus on ourselves. If you think that we are even happier now (because of the other results), absolutely this is not true.” Manchester United return to action for the first time since their 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Liverpool later on Saturday when they travel to Tottenham. Newcastle are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Chelsea and City’s success following huge investment fro

Klopp questions Liverpool attitude after Brighton draw Liverpool (AFP) – Jurgen Klopp criticised the way Liverpool responded to squandering a two-goal lead as Brighton claimed a 2-2 draw at Anfield on Saturday. Jordan Henderson and Sadio Mane had put the Reds 2-0 in front after 24 minutes but Graham Potter’s team fought back with goals from Enock Mwepu and Leandro Trossard either side of half-time. It was just the sixth time Liverpool failed to win a Premier League home game after leading by two goals. Yves Bissouma hit the post and Trossard had a late goal disallowed for offside as the Seagulls threatened to complete a remarkable comeback win. “In the second half, we were not good enough. The body language I didn’t like it all,” the German said. “It was like, ‘Oh my God, it’s really tough’. Yeah, it was clear before the game. “The best way to defend Brighton is to have the ball and play in the spaces where they are exposed, but we didn’t do that and that’s a problem.” Mane and Mohamed Salah had goals ruled out for handball and offside respectively as Liverpool dominated but failed to blow Brighton away in the first half. Klopp’s side remain second but missed the chance to keep pace with leaders Chelsea, who moved three points clear following their 3-0 win at Newcastle and Manchester City’s shock 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace. “It feels like a defeat, not only because we were 2-0 up and didn’t win. It’s because we scored two of the most beautiful goals I’ve ever seen us score, which were disallowed,” added Klopp. Liverpool host Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday before visiting fourth-placed West Ham in the Premier League next weekend.

Liverpool (AFP) – Jurgen Klopp criticised the way Liverpool responded to squandering a two-goal lead as Brighton claimed a 2-2 draw at Anfield on Saturday. Jordan Henderson and Sadio Mane had put the Reds 2-0 in front after 24 minutes but Graham Potter’s team fought back with goals from Enock Mwepu and Leandro Trossard either side of half-time. It was just the sixth time Liverpool failed to win a Premier League home game after leading by two goals. Yves Bissouma hit the post and Trossard had a late goal disallowed for offside as the Seagulls threatened to complete a remarkable comeback win. “In the second half, we were not good enough. The body language I didn’t like it all,” the German said. “It was like, ‘Oh my God, it’s really tough’. Yeah, it was clear before the game. “The best way to defend Brighton is to have the ball and play in the spaces where they are exposed, but we didn’t do that and that’s a problem.” Mane and Mohamed Salah had goals ruled out for handball and of

Khazri’s 68-metre goal earns point for Saint-Etienne Paris (AFP) – Tunisia international Wahbi Khazri scored from well inside his own half as Saint-Etienne drew 1-1 at fellow Ligue 1 strugglers Metz on Saturday. Farid Boulaya drilled in a long-range free-kick to give Metz an early lead, but his goal was upstaged minutes later by Khazri’s memorable strike, measured at 68 metres according to Opta. Khazri dribbled upfield after retrieving the ball inside his own penalty area and hammered it over the backpedalling Alexandre Oukidja for his fourth goal in as many games, and seventh of the season. “I’ve tried it a lot, sometimes they make fun of me, but when it comes off it’s good. It’s good for the team above all,” Khazri told Prime Video. “I took the ball forward and I didn’t have too many options, I had a go and pulled it off.” Saint-Etienne have drawn three of their past four matches but remain bottom of the table and without a win through 12 games of the season. Metz are just one point above them in 18th place.

Paris (AFP) – Tunisia international Wahbi Khazri scored from well inside his own half as Saint-Etienne drew 1-1 at fellow Ligue 1 strugglers Metz on Saturday. Farid Boulaya drilled in a long-range free-kick to give Metz an early lead, but his goal was upstaged minutes later by Khazri’s memorable strike, measured at 68 metres according to Opta. Khazri dribbled upfield after retrieving the ball inside his own penalty area and hammered it over the backpedalling Alexandre Oukidja for his fourth goal in as many games, and seventh of the season. “I’ve tried it a lot, sometimes they make fun of me, but when it comes off it’s good. It’s good for the team above all,” Khazri told Prime Video. “I took the ball forward and I didn’t have too many options, I had a go and pulled it off.” Saint-Etienne have drawn three of their past four matches but remain bottom of the table and without a win through 12 games of the season. Metz are just one point above them in 18th place. from World Socce

Chelsea extend lead as Liverpool held, Man City beaten London (AFP) – Chelsea extended their lead at the top of the Premier League to three points as Reece James scored twice in a 3-0 win at Newcastle as Liverpool and Manchester City stumbled at home in the title race on Saturday. Liverpool blew at 2-0 lead at Anfield as Brighton battled back to earn a deserved 2-2 draw. City are now five points off the top after Pep Guardiola’s 10 men were beaten 2-0 by Crystal Palace at the Etihad. Manchester United return to action for the first time since their 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Liverpool later on Saturday when they travel to Tottenham. Newcastle are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Chelsea and City’s success following huge investment from foreign owners. However, the Saudi-owned Magpies have a battle just to remain in the top flight as they remain rooted in the bottom three without a league win this season. Chelsea were without the injured Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Mason Mount, but the European champions still had far too much class at St James’ Park. James produced two stunning finishes from right wing-back before Jorginho’s penalty rounded off the scoring. Liverpool stretched their unbeaten run to 24 games in all competitions, but will feel two points slipped away after another flying start. Mohamed Salah’s scoring streak came to an end at 10 games, but the Egyptian set up the opener as his pass was swept into the far corner by Jordan Henderson. Sadio Mane doubled the home side’s advantage with a back post header before the Senegalese had another goal ruled out for handball after he caught Brighton goalkeeper Robert Sanchez in possession. The Seagulls grabbed a lifeline before half-time when Enock Mwepu’s cross flew over the stranded Alisson Becker. And Brighton snatched a point after the break when Leandro Trossard rounded off a brilliant team move 25 minutes from time. City’s first home defeat of the season rounded off a perfect day for the Chelsea in the title race. Wilfried Zaha punished slack defending from Ruben Dias and Aymeric Laporte to fire into the far corner after six minutes. Laporte was then sent-off for pulling down Zaha as the last man in first-half stoppage time. Gabriel Jesus thought he had equalised midway through the second-half only for the goal to be ruled out for offside against Phil Foden. The 10-men were then caught out two minutes from time when Connor Gallagher smashed high past Ederson. Arsenal are up to fifth after a fast start and some inspired goalkeeping from Aaron Ramsdale earned the Gunners a 2-0 win at Leicester. Gabriel and Emile Smith Rowe struck inside the opening 18 minutes for the visitors at the King Power. But they relied on Ramsdale thereafter as the England international made a miraculous save from James Maddison among a string of impressive stops. “When I saw the ball leaving Maddison’s foot, I said, ‘Goal’. So I don’t know how it happened,” said Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. “It was incredible – and the moment and the timing of it as well was crucial.” Burnley registered their first win of the season in style with a 3-1 victory over Brentford to move out of the bottom three. Chris Wood, Matt Lowton and Maxwel Cornet all struck in the first 36 minutes as Burnley led a Premier League game 3-0 at half-time for the first time. Southampton opened up a four-point cushion over the relegation zone thanks to Che Adams’ strike to win 1-0 at Watford.

London (AFP) – Chelsea extended their lead at the top of the Premier League to three points as Reece James scored twice in a 3-0 win at Newcastle as Liverpool and Manchester City stumbled at home in the title race on Saturday. Liverpool blew at 2-0 lead at Anfield as Brighton battled back to earn a deserved 2-2 draw. City are now five points off the top after Pep Guardiola’s 10 men were beaten 2-0 by Crystal Palace at the Etihad. Manchester United return to action for the first time since their 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Liverpool later on Saturday when they travel to Tottenham. Newcastle are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Chelsea and City’s success following huge investment from foreign owners. However, the Saudi-owned Magpies have a battle just to remain in the top flight as they remain rooted in the bottom three without a league win this season. Chelsea were without the injured Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Mason Mount, but the European champions still had far too

Bayern rebound from cup humiliation by hitting five in Berlin Berlin (AFP) – Robert Lewandowski netted twice as Bayern Munich responded to their German Cup disaster in midweek with a 5-2 win over Union Berlin on Saturday to stay top of the Bundesliga. Three days after being thrashed 5-0 at Moenchengladbach in the second round of the cup, Bayern bounced back with two quick goals as Lewandowski converted an early penalty, then drilled home a free-kick. Bayern ended Union’s record of 21 league games unbeaten at home as Leroy Sane, Kingsley Coman and Thomas Mueller also grabbed goals, while Julian Ryerson and Niko Giesselmann scored for Union.

Berlin (AFP) – Robert Lewandowski netted twice as Bayern Munich responded to their German Cup disaster in midweek with a 5-2 win over Union Berlin on Saturday to stay top of the Bundesliga. Three days after being thrashed 5-0 at Moenchengladbach in the second round of the cup, Bayern bounced back with two quick goals as Lewandowski converted an early penalty, then drilled home a free-kick. Bayern ended Union’s record of 21 league games unbeaten at home as Leroy Sane, Kingsley Coman and Thomas Mueller also grabbed goals, while Julian Ryerson and Niko Giesselmann scored for Union. from World Soccer Talk https://ift.tt/3CwAR7h

Dortmund hope injured Haaland can play again this year Berlin (AFP) – The hip injury suffered by Erling Braut Haaland is expected to sideline the star striker for several more weeks, with his club Borussia Dortmund hoping he can still play again this year. “It is too early to name an exact date” when Haaland will return, “but we hope he can play again this year,” sports director Michael Zorc said Saturday. “It will take a few more weeks.” The 21-year-old is currently recuperating with his family in Norway. Having scored 70 goals in 69 games since joining Dortmund in January 2020, the loss of Haaland is a blow to the Bundesliga club who started the weekend second in Germany’s top flight. Dortmund hope he will be back before their Bundesliga showdown against current leaders Bayern Munich on December 4. “At the moment, it’s a matter of him clearing his head a bit, as he can’t do much yet,” added Zorc. Haaland has not played since Dortmund’s 4-0 thrashing at Ajax in the Champions League a fortnight ago. His absence will also be felt by the Norwegian team, with Haaland to miss two crucial World Cup qualifiers against Latvia and the Netherlands on November 13 and 16. Norway have not participated in a major tournament since Euro 2000 but currently sit second in Group G, two points behind the Dutch and two ahead of Turkey.

Berlin (AFP) – The hip injury suffered by Erling Braut Haaland is expected to sideline the star striker for several more weeks, with his club Borussia Dortmund hoping he can still play again this year. “It is too early to name an exact date” when Haaland will return, “but we hope he can play again this year,” sports director Michael Zorc said Saturday. “It will take a few more weeks.” The 21-year-old is currently recuperating with his family in Norway. Having scored 70 goals in 69 games since joining Dortmund in January 2020, the loss of Haaland is a blow to the Bundesliga club who started the weekend second in Germany’s top flight. Dortmund hope he will be back before their Bundesliga showdown against current leaders Bayern Munich on December 4. “At the moment, it’s a matter of him clearing his head a bit, as he can’t do much yet,” added Zorc. Haaland has not played since Dortmund’s 4-0 thrashing at Ajax in the Champions League a fortnight ago. His absence will also be felt b

Vinicius double gives Madrid victory over 10-man Elche Madrid (AFP) – Vinicius Junior’s sensational start to the season continued on Saturday as he scored twice in Real Madrid’s 2-1 victory over Elche to ensure the rested Karim Benzema was not missed. Vinicius had already given Madrid the lead when Elche’s Raul Guti was sent off in the 63rd minute and he added a second soon after with a superb chipped finish into the corner. Madrid made life difficult for themselves late on when a Casemiro mistake allowed Pere Milla to pull a goal back but Elche’s brief hope of a comeback came to nothing. The win sends Madrid back to the top of La Liga at least for a few hours, with Sevilla, Real Betis and, more realistically, Real Sociedad able to overtake them later this weekend. Benzema’s resurgence for France means Madrid no longer have their chief goalscorer all to themselves and after 17 games played already this term, Carlo Ancelotti opted to leave the striker at home. It meant a surprise start for Mariano Diaz but it was Vinicius who filled the void, scoring his eighth and ninth goals of the season to continue an excellent run of form under new coach Carlo Ancelotti. Elche came in 15th and unbeaten at the Martinez Valero this season and started well, with Lucas Boye lashing an early shot at Thibaut Courtois. At the other end, Rodrygo ballooned over after a Madrid counter-attack and that was his last contribution before going off injured after 17 minutes, replaced by Marco Asensio. Vinicius gave Madrid the lead shortly after and it came from a Johan Mojica mistake at left-back as his loose pass was punched forward first-time by Casemiro into Mariano, who backheelded behind him into the path of Vinicius. Vinicius took one touch into the area and clipped a left-footed finish into the far corner. Elche should have levelled but Lucas Perez skewed wide after a clever flick by Boye and they pushed again early in the second half. Guti had the best chance but side-footed straight at Courtois and as the goalkeeper tossed the ball out to Toni Kroos, Guti flew into the German, his sliding challenge earning him a second yellow card. A man up with half an hour left, Madrid regained control and added a superb second. It started with a slick combination between their midfield three as Casemiro laid off for Kroos, who steered a sumptuous pass through Elche’s midfield to Luka Modric. Modric slid through Vinicius, who drew out the goalkeeper just enough before scooping it over him and into the net. Elche were given unexpected hope with five minutes left when Madrid gifted them a goal back. Casemiro and Kroos were guilty, as Casemiro’s pass was cut out and headed straight into Pere Milla, with the sliding Kroos failing to intercept. Milla finished past Courtois. Pedro Bigas missed a header from one of numerous Elche crosses slung into the box but Madrid survived.

Madrid (AFP) – Vinicius Junior’s sensational start to the season continued on Saturday as he scored twice in Real Madrid’s 2-1 victory over Elche to ensure the rested Karim Benzema was not missed. Vinicius had already given Madrid the lead when Elche’s Raul Guti was sent off in the 63rd minute and he added a second soon after with a superb chipped finish into the corner. Madrid made life difficult for themselves late on when a Casemiro mistake allowed Pere Milla to pull a goal back but Elche’s brief hope of a comeback came to nothing. The win sends Madrid back to the top of La Liga at least for a few hours, with Sevilla, Real Betis and, more realistically, Real Sociedad able to overtake them later this weekend. Benzema’s resurgence for France means Madrid no longer have their chief goalscorer all to themselves and after 17 games played already this term, Carlo Ancelotti opted to leave the striker at home. It meant a surprise start for Mariano Diaz but it was Vinicius who filled t

Ramsdale heroics give Arsenal win at Leicester Leicester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – A goalkeeping masterclass from Aaron Ramsdale helped Arsenal to a 2-0 Premier League win at Leicester on Saturday as the in-form Gunners climbed to the cusp of the top four. Gabriel and Emile Smith Rowe gave the visitors a comfortable first-half lead but only Ramsdale’s heroics denied the Foxes a sniff of a comeback at the King Power Stadium. Mikel Arteta’s team extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games and moved fifth, level on 17 points with fourth-placed West Ham, and three ahead of Leicester, who drop to 10th. Brendan Rodgers’ men had won their last four games in all competitions to recover from a slow start to the season. But it was Arsenal who maintained their momentum after recovering from their worst start to a league campaign in 67 years. Arteta’s men were bottom of the table after three games, but have since moved ahead of Manchester United and Tottenham in the battle for a place in the top four. Arsenal never looked back after a stunning start. The Gunners had only scored once away from home in the league but grabbed an early lead through centre-back Gabriel. The Brazilian scored his first goal of the season in the fifth minute when he met Bukayo Saka’s inswinging corner with a glancing header into the far corner. Smith Rowe doubled the lead in the 18th minute with his fourth goal of the season when he tucked away a loose ball in the area after Luke Thomas’ poor clearance. Leicester had scored at least twice in each of the past five matches in all competitions but Ramsdale, who joined Arsenal from Sheffield United earlier this year, was in inspired form to prevent them adding to their goal tally. He tipped wide Kelechi Iheanacho’s long-range effort and made a remarkable save just before half-time, parrying James Maddison’s free-kick onto the post before Jonny Evans hit the woodwork on the rebound and Thomas Partey cleared the ball off the line. The 23-year-old continued to keep Leicester at bay in the second half as he denied substitutes Ademola Lookman and Harvey Barnes. Thomas and Barnes went close but Arsenal almost made the game safe when Kasper Schmeichel kept out Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s shot at the far post from a corner.

Leicester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – A goalkeeping masterclass from Aaron Ramsdale helped Arsenal to a 2-0 Premier League win at Leicester on Saturday as the in-form Gunners climbed to the cusp of the top four. Gabriel and Emile Smith Rowe gave the visitors a comfortable first-half lead but only Ramsdale’s heroics denied the Foxes a sniff of a comeback at the King Power Stadium. Mikel Arteta’s team extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games and moved fifth, level on 17 points with fourth-placed West Ham, and three ahead of Leicester, who drop to 10th. Brendan Rodgers’ men had won their last four games in all competitions to recover from a slow start to the season. But it was Arsenal who maintained their momentum after recovering from their worst start to a league campaign in 67 years. Arteta’s men were bottom of the table after three games, but have since moved ahead of Manchester United and Tottenham in the battle for a place in the top four. Arsenal never look