■ITALY
Mourinho sidelines Adriano
Inter coach Jose Mourinho has sidelined Brazilian striker Adriano ahead of their Serie A match away to Reggina because of a lack of professionalism. The Italian media recently reported that Mourinho was angry with Adriano staying out socializing following last Sunday’s disappointing 0-0 draw with Genoa. The next morning the troubled Brazilian, who returned to Brazil last season to boost his physique and his morale, is reported to have turned up late for training. Mourinho subsequently left Adriano out of the team that drew 0-0 with Fiorentina on Wednesday and on Friday the former Chelsea boss said he would not tolerate any player’s unprofessional approach. “In the last few months if there’s someone who has tried to take care of him, not only as a coach but also as a colleague, it’s definitely me,” Mourinho said. “But there comes a time, especially when you are in charge of a group of 29 players, that you can no longer afford to give someone special treatment or more liberties than any of the others.”
■ARGENTINA
Maradona heads to Europe
New Argentina coach Diego Maradona will set off on a European scouting tour this weekend, an Argentine soccer federation source said on Friday. The former Barcelona and Napoli star will return to the countries he played his club soccer in, as well as heading to Germany, to assess the Argentine players there. Maradona makes his managerial debut in a friendly against Scotland in Glasgow on Nov. 19, followed by a match with France in Marseille next February. On Thursday, the new coach told a press conference: “I am traveling to England on Saturday to watch [Carlos] Tevez and [Javier] Mascherano play. And in Scotland, I am going to make my coaching debut.” Mascherano’s club boss, Liverpool’s Rafael Benitez, on Friday welcomed Maradona’s plans to visit England, saying he would roll out the red carpet. “Diego will be very welcome to come to our training ground next week and to see the match. Maybe I can persuade him to take a few free-kicks.”
■SPAIN
De La Red leaves hospital
Real Madrid midfielder Ruben De La Red was released from the hospital on Friday following his collapse during a Copa del Rey match against Real Union on Thursday. The Spain international was cleared by doctors to return to the Spanish capital by airplane, after being kept overnight for observation. De La Red underwent medical tests after fainting because of exertion, but the results were not released. He is expected to undergo further tests in Madrid. “It was the kind of episode that gives your heart a jolt, so I want to wish him a speedy recovery,” Madrid president Ramon Calderon said. De La Red fell face first as he was walking away from the penalty area in the 13th minute, silencing the crowd.
■GERMANY
Leverkusen win to go top
Bayer Leverkusen went back to the top of the Bundesliga for at least one night after a 2-0 home win over VfL Wolfsburg on Friday. Wolfsburg had no answer to Leverkusen’s fast, skillful passing game and the only surprise was it took until 12 minutes into the second half for the home side to go ahead. The breakthrough came when Swiss forward Tranquillo Barnetta struck low from the edge of the area and beat the keeper at his near post. Germany’s Stefan Kiessling headed the second a few minutes later. It was Leverkusen’s fourth successive 2-0 victory in the Bundesliga and it was enough to take them ahead of surprise leaders Hoffenheim.
North Korea’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup-winning team on Saturday received a heroes’ welcome back in the capital, Pyongyang, with hundreds of people on the streets to celebrate their success. They had defeated Spain on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the U17 World Cup final in the Dominican Republic on Nov. 3. It was the second global title in two months for secretive North Korea — largely closed off to the outside world; they also lifted the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in September. Officials and players’ families gathered at Pyongyang International Airport to wave flowers and North Korea flags as the
Taiwan’s top table tennis player Lin Yun-ju made his debut in the US professional table tennis scene by taking on a new role as a team’s co-owner. On Wednesday, Major League Table Tennis (MLTT), founded in September last year, announced on its official Web site that Lin had become part of the ownership group of the Princeton Revolution, one of the league’s eight teams. MLTT chief executive officer Flint Lane described Lin’s investment as “another great milestone for table tennis in America,” saying that the league’s “commitment to growth and innovation is drawing attention from the best in the sport, and we’re
Coco Gauff of the US on Friday defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 to set up a showdown with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in the final of the WTA Finals, while in the doubles, Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching was eliminated. Gauff generated six break points to Belarusian Sabalenka’s four and built on early momentum in the opening set’s tiebreak that she carried through to the second set. She is the youngest player at 20 to make the final at the WTA Finals since Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in 2010. Zheng earlier defeated Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 7-5 to book
For King Faisal, a 20-year-old winger from Ghana, the invitation to move to Brazil to play soccer “was a dream.” “I believed when I came here, it would help me change the life of my family and many other people,” he said in Sao Paulo. For the past year and a half, he has been playing on the under-20s squad for Sao Paulo FC, one of South America’s most prominent clubs. He and a small number of other Africans are tearing across pitches in a country known as the biggest producer and exporter of soccer stars in the world, from Pele to Neymar. For
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