SPORTSWednesday, October 28, 201530
Shaikh Salman furious at ‘nasty lies’
Roger Federer shines Sports in Shorts
London
Asian football chief and FIFA presidential
contender Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim al Khalifa yesterday hit out at “nasty lies” which he said were damaging his campaign.
Bahrain human rights groups have accused Shaikh Salman of involvement in the arrest and torture of footballers when he was head of the Bahrain Football Association.
“These are false, nasty lies that have been repeated again and again in the past and the
present,” the Asian Football Confederation president told the BBC in an interview.
“I cannot deny something that I haven’t done,” the 49-year-old added.
“Such accusations are not just damaging, it’s really hurting. Some people have agenda on their table.”
“It’s not just damaging me, it’s damaging the people and the country,” Shaikh Salman added.
Shaikh Salman was among the late candidates who entered the race to succeed Sepp Blatter as president of
FIFA on Monday in the hours before the deadline to submit bids passed.
With the numerical power of the Asian confederation
he will be one of the leading contenders among the eight registered for the vote on February 26.
Shaikh Salman said he
would not take a salary if elected and vowed to clean up scandal-tainted FIFA.
“With the support I’m going to get we’re going to turn it around very quick,” he promised.
“We have big examples of football organisations around the world - the Premier League, the Bundesliga, even UEFA who have from a football side and a revenue side, it is not even greater than FIFA, but it is handled in a very professional way. And this is what we want to bring to Fifa.”
Basel
Roger Federer charged past his first hurdle in
the quest for a lucky seventh title at the Swiss Indoors yesterday, with the top seed delivering a crushing 6-1, 6-2 lesson to Mikhail Kukushkin.
T h e f i r s t - r o u n d demolition in front of an appreciative home public at the event where the 17-time Grand Slam winner got his start in the game as a ballboy took only 54 minutes.
2014 finalist David Goffin of Belgium, hammered by Federer in less than an hour a year ago in the title match, won his opening match as he beat Italian Andreas
Seppi 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.The fourth-ranked
Federer was rock solid in his first match since an opening loss a fortnight ago in Shanghai.
The Swiss is seeking his 10th straight finals appearance at Basel. He last beat his 64th-ranked Kazakh opponent in the Davis Cup quarter-finals in Geneva a year ago.
Federer said he knew that he would be facing a tough customer in Kukushkin.
“I was seeing the ball as big as a melon,” said the 34-year-old, who has five titles this season. “I knew that I had to stay with him in the first set as he would
be looking for a fast start.“That was my main
strategy, to keep him under control. I knew the second set would go easier. “I’m very happy with this performance, especially to advance so well here at home. He was trying to give me a game I don’t like but I was able to counter that.
“This was a very good start for me, an enjoyable match.”
Grigor Dimitrov began erasing a run of recent poor form as the Bulgarian beat Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-3, 6-4 to reach the second round. German Philipp Kohlschreiber put out Pole Jerzy Janowicz 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.
Nagelsmann to become youngest coach BerlinJulian Nagelsmann will become the youngest coach in Bundesliga history when the 28-year-old takes charge of Hoffenheim next season, the club announced yesterday, providing they avoid relegation.With Hoffenheim second from bottom, Markus Gisdol was relieved of his duties as head coach on Monday and has been replaced by renowned German club saviour Huub Stevens for the rest of this season.
Warne wants to train with ShahDubaiLegendary Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne yesterday said he would like to train with fast-rising Pakistan spinner Yasir Shah in the nets, a wish Pakistan management welcomed.Warne, on a promotional tour to United Arab Emirates (UAE), said he believes Shah is a world class bowler.
Rooney granted testimonial LondonManchester United captain Wayne Rooney will have a testimonial next season after a campaign by supporters to honour the England striker’s long service to the club.Rooney will play in a testimonial match for a Manchester United XI against a yet-to-be-named opponent at Old Trafford on August 3, 2016.Details of the players and managers who will be involved on the day are expected to be revealed over the next few weeks.
Shaikh Salman was among the late candidates who entered the race to succeed Sepp Blatter as president of
FIFA on Monday in the hours before the deadline to submit bids passed
© GRAPHIC NEWSSources: IRB, Scrum.com Pictures: Getty Images
October 31, Twickenham Stadium, London, England
NEW ZEALAND AUSTRALIACoachSteve HansenCaptain: Richie McCawWorld Cup record
Best finishWinner 1987, 2011Aiming to be first teamto win back-to-backtitles – 48 wins in 53matches since victoryover France in 2011 final
CoachMichael Cheika
Captain: Stephen MooreWorld Cup record
Best finishWinner 1991, 1999
Arguably tougher routeto final, beating England
and Wales beforecontroversial win over
Scotland in quarter-final
Key men:Savea v
Ashley-CooperIn-form wingers
on oppositesides of pitch
Keybattle:McCaw vPocockTurnover balls atbreakdown will be crucial
W43 L6 W39 L8HEAD-TO-HEAD
(All-time meetings)N. Zealand 105
Draws 7
Australia 42
ROAD TO FINALFijiUruguayEnglandWalesScotlandArgentina
28-1365-3
33-1315-6
35-3429-15
ArgentinaNamibiaGeorgiaTongaFranceS. Africa
26-1658-1443-10
47-962-1320-18
Match 1Match 2Match 3Match 4Q-finalS-final
TEAM STATISTICS
EXCITING ENCOUNTERS: An Antipodean rivalry
2568036455513464
53
205842642
7262379
35
Points scoredPoints against
TriesTurnoversTackles
Metres gainedOffloads
910
1213
11
23
4
78
6 5 1
14
15
1 5 687
3
10
1113
12
14 15
24
9
Dan CarterRecord points scorer,set for first WorldCup final aftermissing2011withinjury
Bernard FoleyAustralia will need
fly-half to be athis kicking best
to competewith Carter
MoodyColesFranksRetallickWhitelockKainoMcCaw (c)Read
12345678
A. SmithCarterSaveaNonuC. SmithMilner-SkudderB. Smith
91011121314
15
PROBABLE LINE-UPSNEW ZEALAND
SlipperMoore (c)KepuDouglasSimmonsFardyHooperPocock
12345678
GeniaFoleyMitchellGiteauKuridraniAshley-CooperFolau
91011121314
15
AUSTRALIA
First meeting on neutral soil.David Campese makesinspired reverse pass toTim Horan, who scoresto send Australia to final
World Cup SF,Dublin, 1991
AUS 16NZL 06
All Blacks lead 21-0 after justfive minutes in front of worldrecord crowd of 109,874 –Australia draw level beforeJonah Lomu seals late win
Test match,Sydney, 2000
NZL 39AUS 35
Wallabies win first meetingin 11 in World Cup warm-up.All Blacks lost same matchin 2011 but went on to winWorld Cup on home turf
Rugby Ch’shipSydney, 2015
AUS 27NZL 19
Shaikh Salman
Federer celebrates victory
Madrid
Copa del Rey holders Barcelona begin their
defence of the trophy when they go to third-tier Villanovense for the first leg of their last-32 tie on Wednesday evening.
The match has been brought forward from the first midweek in December because of Barcelona’s involvement in the Club World Cup in Japan at the end of the year, and so the Catalans make the trip to the small town of Villanueva de la Serena while the rest of La Liga enjoys a midweek off.
Still without the injured Lionel Messi, Barca coach Luis Enrique has also opted to rest the likes of Neymar, Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets and Claudio Bravo for the game against opponents from the region of Extremadura in western Spain.
As a result, four players from Barca’s B team, who like Villanovense compete in the Second Division B, have been promoted to the first team.
Midfielders Sergi Samper and Gerard Gumbau, both 20 and who have already featured for the first team, are included along with attacking duo Aitor Cantalapiedra and Wilfrid Kaptoum, both aged 19. A slip-up would not be disastrous for Barca with the second leg to be played on December 2 at the Camp Nou, but Luis Enrique is prevented by competition rules from fielding too many reserve players.
“We are limited because we must always have seven first-team players on the field,” he acknowledged.
“I would have liked to rely on more young players and give more of a rest to others.”
Barcelona look to youth for Copa del Rey tie
Barcelona’s Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba warm up
