■ITALY
Sampdoria knock out Inter
Serie A leaders Inter were knocked out of the Italian Cup on Thursday when a 1-0 semi-final second-leg win over Sampdoria fell short of overturning a 3-0 deficit from the teams’ first meeting. In the May 13 final in Rome, Sampdoria will face Lazio. It will be Sampdoria’s first cup final appearance since 1994 where they defeated Ancona. With three goals to make up, Inter coach Jose Mourinho played three strikers, with Mario Balotelli, Julio Cruz and Zlatan Ibrahimovic all starting. It was Ibrahimovic who was to score the only goal of the second leg with a superb 27th-minute volley.
■SWEDEN
AIK go top of Allsvenskan
Ivan Obolo capitalized on a mishap by Orgryte goalkeeper Nathan Coe to give AIK a 1-0 victory and top spot in the Swedish league on Thursday. Obolo scored with a weak shot in the 30th minute for the Stockholm suburb side at Goteborg after Coe fell on the slippery grass. “I slipped ... but it was my fault,” Coe said. AIK top the 16-team Allsvenskan standings with 12 points after winning their fourth straight game by a single goal. Still, AIK coach Mikael Stahre was not pleased. “We didn’t play well,” Stahre said. “And they watered the pitch too much before the match.”Star striker Henrik Larsson’s Helsingborg lost to Halmstad 3-1, while two-time UEFA Cup champions IFK Goteborg edged Hammarby 1-0. Gefle drew with Gais 0-0 and Orebro nipped defending champions Kalmar 2-1.
■ENGLAND
Saints to appeal penalty
Southampton are set to appeal against the 10-point penalty imposed on them on Thursday that threatens to condemn them to life next season in the third tier of English soccer. The penalty was imposed by the English Football League in reaction to the club’s parent company going into administration. Southampton are currently second from bottom in the Championship with two matches left to play this season. If they can manage to scramble out of the drop zone, they will inevitably be relegated once the points penalty is applied, but that option would be preferable to starting next season with a 10-point deficit.
■ITALY
Carrozzieri fail doping test
Palermo defender Moris Carrozzieri has tested positive for cocaine following a Serie A match against Torino on April 5, the Italian Olympic Committee announced on Thursday. The 28-year-old is a first team regular at Palermo, who currently lie seventh in Serie A. “This news has surprised us,” the club said in a statement. “We repeat our total commitment in the battle against the use of illegal substances which damage the health of people and in particular the young,” club president Maurizio Zamparini told Ansa news agency. “If it is true, he has taken cocaine, he must admit it.”
■CANADA
Two fans charged over flares
Two men face assault and other charges after two flares were thrown from the stands at a Major League Soccer game between Toronto FC and Chivas USA on Wednesday. Toronto police said one of the flares landed on a woman’s leg, causing burn injuries, and the other landed on the artificial turf at BMO Field and caused about US$2,000 damage. Andjelo Franjic, 18, and a 17-year-old whose name was not released, were charged with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and mischief under US$5,000, police said in a statement on Thursday.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) is considering reducing its pitch clock by two seconds to help players better adjust to the rules applied at the World Baseball Classic (WBC). The proposal aims to shorten the pitch timer from 25 seconds to 23 seconds with the bases empty, and from 20 seconds to 18 seconds with runners on base. Currently, the WBC mandates that pitchers deliver a pitch every 18 seconds with the bases empty and 15 seconds with runners on base. The issue was raised during a pre-season CPBL managers’ meeting on Tuesday by Rakuten Monkeys bench and batting
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