sports013013

  In short: Paris Saint-Germain defeated Inter Milan 5-0 in the Champions League final. Teenager Désiré Doué scored twice in a starring performance for the French club. It was PSG's first victory in the Champions League, having lost the final in 2020. Paris Saint-Germain, Champions League winner. At long last, the club that was transformed by Qatari billions and bought and sold a succession of the world's greatest players in an extravagant bid to get to the top has its hands on the big one. European club soccer's grandest prize has a new home after PSG thrashed Inter Milan 5-0 in the final in Munich. The trophy that not even Lionel Messi, Neymar, or Kylian Mbappe could deliver to the French club was finally claimed by Luis Enrique, the Spanish coach who has overseen PSG's shift from the era of galactico signings to one of genuine team-building. Fitting then that Désiré Doué, the 19-year-old French forward emblematic of the club's new generation, was the chief inspir...

  There's only one spot for either Josh Hazlewood or Scott Boland in the World Test Championship final and one of them is on fire. Josh Hazlewood showed he's got no issues with his shoulder after snaring three wickets in his first game for a month to help push Royal Challengers Bengaluru into their first Indian Premier League final since 2016. Having overcome the shoulder issue that he was managing in India, Hazlewood ripped through the Punjab Kings' top order, claiming the prized wicket of captain Shreyas Iyer and then fellow Aussie Josh Inglis, and finished with 3-21. It was perfect timing for Hazlewood, who is in a one-on-one battle with fellow Test quick Scott Boland for a place in the Australian team for the World Test Championship final at Lord's. Australian coach Andrew McDonald declared earlier this week that only one of the pair would take on South Africa and was happy with Hazlewood to round out his preparation in India. "Whatever decision we make, it...

 

  Legendary Brazil striker Marta will return to the national team aged 39 after a nine-month absence for two friendlies against Japan, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) said Tuesday. Widely considered the greatest female footballer of all time, the number 10 last wore the Brazil jersey in the Olympic final, losing 1-0 to the United States on August 10 in Paris. Marta said at the time that it was "probably" her last match for Brazil. However coach Arthur Elias has included her in his 26-player squad for friendlies against Japan on May 30 and June 2 in Sao Paulo. These two matches are part of the team's preparation for the Copa America in July. "I spoke to her recently, and she has made herself available to help the Seleçao as long as she plays at the highest level, which she does," Elias said in a CBF statement, noting that Marta was crowned MLS champion with Orlando Pride last season. "Her presence is also significant in inspiring young players,...

  Argentine Security Minister Patricia Bullrich handed the United States Embassy in Buenos Aires on Monday a list of 15,000 violent football fans who will be banned from stadiums during the upcoming Club World Cup. The newly-expanded tournament, to be held on US soil from June 14 to July 13, will feature Argentine clubs Boca Juniors and River Plate, as well as 30 other teams from around the world. "The list includes more than 15,000 people who will be banned from stadiums. For us, this is extremely important because no violent person who has committed any crime in Argentine stadiums will be able to attend this sporting event," Bullrich told reporters. The list was compiled through the "Tribuna Segura" program, a tool that allows the detection of people banned from Argentine stadiums. "Since the beginning of this government, 'Tribuna Segura' has monitored more than 4 million people in 1,328 matches. We have detected 1,166 people with arrest warrants a...

  Sheffield United cruised into the Championship play-off final with a thumping 6-0 aggregate win over Bristol City. The Blades, who won the first leg 3-0 at Ashton Gate on Thursday, started slowly but took the lead on the night when Kieffer Moore headed in Harrison Burrows' corner kick before the break. Gus Hamer added to their advantage with a deflected long-range shot from a corner routine which found him in acres of space at the edge of the area, and substitute Callum O'Hare slammed home his side's sixth of the semi-final. Chris Wilder's men will now face either Sunderland or Coventry City in the play-off final at Wembley on Saturday, 24 May as they look to secure an immediate return to the Premier League. Sheffield United's victory, by a record scoreline for a play-off semi-final at this level, means that the team who finished third in the regular season have progressed to the Championship play-off final in nine of the past 10 seasons. From beleaguered to the b...

    Al Nasr recorded a record 9-0 win over Al Akhdud at the Prince Hatlul bin Abdulaziz Sports City Stadium on Monday in the Saudi Pro League, again without the team's best star Cristiano Ronaldo! Despite being eliminated from the league title race, the win moved Al Nasr up to third place in the points table, with their tally now at 63 points from 31 matches. This match has gone down in history as the biggest win in the club's history. Their previous highest win was an 8-0 win against Abha Club last season. Captain Ronaldo was not in the squad for the match. According to media reports, coach Stefano Pioli rested him due to physical fatigue. However, his absence did not dampen Al Nasr's dominance. Aymaniyah scored the first goal of the match in the 16th minute. Then John Duran and Marcelo Brozovic made the scoreline 3-0 within 30 minutes of the match. Sadio Mane scored his first goal from the penalty spot in first-half injury time, giving Al Nasr a 4-0 lead at half-time. ...

  The speculation has finally come to an end. Carlo Ancelotti has officially taken over as the coach of the Brazil national team. The Italian coach will leave his job at Real Madrid at the end of the current season and join the Brazilian team on May 26. With this deal, Ancelotti becomes the first foreign coach in Brazil's history. No foreign coach has ever coached Brazil full-time before. Ancelotti has won 15 trophies in two spells as Real coach and led Los Blancos to two Champions League and La Liga titles last season. The 65-year-old will end his time at the Santiago Bernabeu as one of the club's most successful managers. It was almost certain that he was leaving Real Madrid. His resignation was confirmed after Sunday's El Clasico defeat. Real are seven points behind Barcelona in La Liga with three games remaining. It's not just a grind against Barcelona. This result almost guarantees that Real will end the season without a trophy for the first time in four years....