COPPA ITALIA
Dallinga scores brace
A Thijs Dallinga double on Tuesday helped Bologna to a 3-0 win against Empoli in the first leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final as the visitors remained on course to end their more than 50-year wait to lift the trophy. The relegation-threatened hosts were outclassed by UEFA Champions League-chasing Bologna, who took the lead in the 23rd minute when Jens Odgaard crossed from the left to find Riccardo Orsolini unmarked. The visitors doubled their advantage six minutes later with Dallinga tucking away a perfect through-ball from Dan Ndoye and six minutes after the interval the pair combined again with Dallinga sliding in to finish off Ndoye’s pass across goal.
Photo: Reuters
COUPE DE FRANCE
PSG avoid upset
Paris Saint-Germain avoided a huge upset on Tuesday when they rallied from two goals down to beat second-tier USL Dunkerque 4-2 and reach the Coupe de France final. It seemed a mismatch between unbeaten Ligue 1 leaders PSG and Dunkerque, who are fifth in Ligue 2, but PSG’s fourth goal only came deep into stoppage-time and on the counterattack with Dunkerque pushing hard for an equalizer. The final is scheduled for May 24, with the other semi-final — to be played after press time last night — between AS Cannes and Stade de Rennais.
Photo: AFP
BUNDESLIGA
Supporters buy stake
St Pauli supporters have raised more than 27 million euros (US$29.1 million) for a majority stake in the club’s stadium after taking part in German soccer’s first fan cooperative, the Hamburg-based club said on Tuesday. More than 21,000 people joined the fundraising cooperative after its near five-month subscription period ended at a minute to midnight the night before, the club said. St Pauli said there had been a “huge rush” of people buying shares to be part-owners of the Millerntor Stadium in the final hours. They each spent 850 euros for each share they bought, with 100 euros of that going on fees and contributions. Each purchase entered the buyer in a draw for prizes including a dinner with team captain Jackson Irvine, VIP packages, signed jerseys and more.
ARGENTINA
Maradona’s heart explained
Experts involved in Diego Maradona’s autopsy on Tuesday testified at the trial of seven health professionals accused of negligent homicide that the star had an abnormally large heart, suffered from cirrhosis and showed no traces of alcohol or drugs at the time of is death. Forensic expert Alejandro Ezequiel Vega told the court that Maradona’s heart was “enlarged” and weighed about 503g, when the average weight is between 250g and 300g. Maradona, who led Argentina to the World Cup title in 1986, died on Nov. 25, 2020. He was 60. Vega said that the examination of Maradona’s heart showed that the former star had “ischemia,” with “lack of blood flow and oxygen.” The autopsy concluded that Maradona died of acute pulmonary edema secondary to congestive heart failure.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
RSS