Super Cup clash between Milan giants brings Italian football renaissance to Riyadh

Super Cup clash between Milan giants brings Italian football renaissance to Riyadh
On Wednesday night, the latest incarnations of the Milanese giants will meet in the Supercoppa Italiana, the Italian Super Cup, at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 18 January 2023

Super Cup clash between Milan giants brings Italian football renaissance to Riyadh

Super Cup clash between Milan giants brings Italian football renaissance to Riyadh
  • Serie A President Lorenzo Casini talks to Arab News about holding the ‘Supercoppa’ in the Kingdom, the league’s return to the glory days of the ’90s and the national-team paradox

People in the Middle East who are long-time followers of European football look back on the late 1980s and early 1990s as a golden era for Italian football.

Arrigo Sacchi’s AC Milan and Giovanni Trapattoni’s Inter, both of whom featured a mixture of some of the best exports from across the continent and Italy’s finest home-grown talent, captured the imagination in the same ways that Real Madrid and Barcelona later would in the heydays of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

In the red and black corner we had the Dutch trio of Ruud Gullit, Marco Van Basten and Frank Rijkaard, mixing it with Franco Baresi, Paolo Maldini and Carlo Ancelotti. And in the blue and black corner, the German triumvirate of Jurgen Klinsmann, Lothar Matthaus and Andreas Brehme, supported by Walter Zenga, Giuseppe Bergomi and Aldo Serena.

Between them, Milan and Inter cleaned up, at home and on the continent.

On Wednesday night, the latest incarnations of the Milanese giants will meet in the Supercoppa Italiana, the Italian Super Cup, at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh.

Lorenzo Casini, who was appointed president of Serie A in 2022, is very aware of the comparisons between the current Milan and Inter teams — led by Stefano Pioli and Simone Inzaghi, respectively — and their previous, legendary sides.

“It’s interesting because the history of soccer now should be looked at in centuries,” he told Arab News.

“Of course, we have cycles. Milan and Inter are like Real Madrid or Manchester United; some win more, some win less. But we are sure that together with other Italian teams, we are going back to the fabulous ’90s.”

Wednesday’s game will be the third time the showpiece match between the winner of the Italian league and cup competitions has taken place in Saudi Arabia.

In 2018, Juventus beat Milan 1-0, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring the winner at King Abdullah Sport City Stadium in Jeddah. A year later, Lazio beat Juventus 3-1 at Mrsool Park in Riyadh

“Having the Supercoppa here, it’s very important because it’s a great opportunity for Italian soccer, for promoting our capacity,” Casini said during a lunch event hosted by the Italian ambassador at his residence in Riyadh.

“And we are also happy with the organization because it’s an opportunity not only to promote sports, but also to strengthen our relationship with this country.”

Serie A is in negotiations regarding an extension of the Italian Super Cup’s residency in Saudi. There were even reports during the summer that the format might be expanded to include four teams, similar to the Spanish Super Cup, which concluded on Sunday in Riyadh.

“We, as Italy, we were the first country and the first national league to come here and we were very happy with that,” Casini said.

“We are now aware that there are many proposals on the table, especially the format, and this is something that the national league is assessing very carefully. And of course we are very interested in promoting and exporting Italian soccer abroad.”

Serie A has been going through something of renaissance in the past few years, with Inter in 2021 breaking a nine-year Juventus title monopoly. That was followed a year later by AC Milan claiming their first Serie A championship since 2011. This season, Luciano Spalletti’s wonderful Napoli side are leading the league by nine points, as things stand.

Importantly, some of Europe’s most sought after players have made Italy their home.

“On the one hand it is growing, especially if you see the young (players). Of course financial conditions changed and this moved the teams to find new recipes in order to hire the best players,” said Casini.

“So there is more investment in young athletes. There are also more abilities to find the athletes or players at the end of their contracts, so they might have a better salary.

“So there’s plenty of tricks that were used in order to improve the quality of our championship. And Napoli is showing that, not only in the national league but also in the Champions League.”

With Massimiliano Allegri back at Juventus, Maurizio Sarri at Lazio, Jose Mourinho at Roma and Gian Piero Gasperini at Atalanta, Serie A is now home to some of Europe’s best coaches, too.

“Sometimes the Italian national championship has been defined as the most beautiful in the world; probably is,” Casini said. “And it was and still is the most difficult in the world, for two reasons.

“One is we have very, very good defenders; it is very difficult to score with Italian defenders.

“And second, we have probably the best trainers. So the tactics and the strategy is very important and — this is the downside — it’s probably created sometimes a game that is more fragmented. So this is a problem that we should reflect about.”

While Serie A is bouncing back, however, the Italian national team continue to perplex. Having won the delayed Euro 2020 with a 2-1 win over England in the final at Wembley in 2021, the Azzurri then failed to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar. Such inconsistencies, says Casini, are nothing new.

“That was a paradox. On the one hand, if you see the history of Italian victories, whenever we won something as a national team, the year later or the two years later, we did not very well,” he said.

“It happened in 1982; we won (the World Cup) in Spain. It happened in 2006 (in Germany), so it’s something that belongs to our history. We were also not lucky, actually. But if you see the Nation’s League now, we are again in the final four.”

One Italian triumph stands out above all others in Casini’s mind.

“Probably 1982, because I was 6 years old,” he said. “So I see Paolo Rossi, that was impressive. I remember going to Egypt in 1988, or traveling, and still everyone, from the cab drivers to the shoppers, saying, ‘Italia, Paolo Rossi’ — that was something that is in my heart and will always be.”

Returning to the present, Casini believes that Saudi Arabia is now making a case for being considered a global football hub.

“I believe that and this is what the facts are demonstrating, that Saudi Arabia is investing a lot in the future of soccer, in the future of sports,” he said.

“The case of Cristiano Ronaldo is an evidence of that. Also, the commitment to obtain the award for the Expo, that it’s a more general and cultural perspective, and also the candidacy for the World Cup.

“This clearly shows that Saudi Arabia is planning huge investment in soccer. And this is something that for sure will benefit everyone.”

On Wednesday night, it is Italian football that will be in the regional spotlight and Casini’s efforts to raise the profile of Serie A will continue.

“It's something that we have always done,” he said. “We went to China, we played in Libya once, we went to the United States, we went to Qatar. So we are happy to be here in Saudi Arabia.”
 


Grizzlies clinch playoff berth with rout of Rockets, Warriors down 76ers

Grizzlies clinch playoff berth with rout of Rockets, Warriors down 76ers
Updated 25 March 2023

Grizzlies clinch playoff berth with rout of Rockets, Warriors down 76ers

Grizzlies clinch playoff berth with rout of Rockets, Warriors down 76ers
  • Eight Grizzlies players converted from beyond the arc and Kennard was the most ruthlessly efficient of all
  • Anthony Davis scored 37 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as the Lakers boosted their post-season hopes with a 116-111 victory over Oklahoma City Thunder

LOS ANGELES: The Memphis Grizzlies clinched an NBA playoff berth in emphatic style on Friday, with Luke Kennard leading a dazzling display from three-point range in a 151-114 rout of the Houston Rockets.

Kennard set a franchise record with 10 three-pointers — on just 11 attempts — as Memphis set a franchise record with 25 from beyond the arc.

Their 25 treys came on just 42 attempts. Eight Grizzlies players converted from beyond the arc and Kennard was the most ruthlessly efficient of all.

“It feels like every shot I take is going to go in,” Kennard said after scoring 30 points.

Desmond Bane added 25 points and two-time All-Star Ja Morant added 18 in a confident performance off the bench in his second game back from an eight-game NBA suspension for brandishing a gun at a nightclub.

Even against Western Conference stragglers Houston, it was an impressive display.

Most importantly, Kennard said, it was the team’s most complete game since his arrival.

“Playing hard, playing fast, communicating a lot better,” he said. “We put it together for about a 48-minute game, so it was a fun game. I love the way we played — we’ve just got to build off that.”

In Salt Lake City, the Milwaukee Bucks made 22 three-pointers in a 144-116 wire-to-wire victory over the Utah Jazz that preserved their two-and-a-half-game lead over Boston atop the Eastern Conference.

The Celtics kept the pressure on with a 120-95 victory over the Indiana Pacers while third-placed Philadelphia slipped back with a 120-112 loss to the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco.

Grayson Allen scored a season-high 25 points for Milwaukee, draining five three-pointers. Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 24 points and handed out 11 assists for the Bucks before sitting out the fourth quarter.

The Greek superstar took a hard foul early in the game and grabbed his right wrist — the same wrist he injured in February.

But if Antetokounmpo was slowed, the Bucks weren’t. They drained eight three-pointers — four by Allen — in the first quarter and Brook Lopez had four of his seven blocks in the first frame as they seized control.

Six Bucks players scored in double figures and Milwaukee dished out 42 assists.

“It’s a really fun way to play,” Allen said. “We were getting the ball up the court super quick today. A bunch of those possessions were less than five seconds — you get, like, three passes in and a good shot.”

In Boston, Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 34 points – his 40th 30-point game of the season, setting a franchise record.

Jaylen Brown added 27 points and grabbed seven rebounds and Derrick White chipped in 22 points for Boston, who outscored the Pacers 32-21 in the third quarter and rolled from there.

Tyrese Haliburton and Myles Turner scored 20 apiece for Indiana, who are chasing the Chicago Bulls for 10th place in the East and the final play-in tournament berth.

The Bulls beat the Trail Blazers 124-96 in Portland.

In San Francisco, Jordan Poole scored 33 points and Stephen Curry added 29 as the reigning champion Warriors withstood 46 points from Sixers star Joel Embiid.

With James Harden sidelined by injury, Embiid had Philadelphia poised to hand Golden State a rare home defeat.

He made 19 of 22 free throws, grabbed nine rebounds and handed out eight assists, and Philadelphia led by 11 early in the fourth quarter.

The Warriors pulled level four times in the period before Curry got past Embiid for the go-ahead bank shot with 2:20 remaining.

In Los Angeles, Anthony Davis scored 37 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as the Lakers boosted their post-season hopes with a 116-111 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Lakers, with superstar LeBron James sidelined by a foot injury, have won three straight and at 37-37 are level with the Minnesota Timberwolves for seventh in the West.


Alcaraz, Fritz, Andreescu advance to Miami Open 3rd round

Alcaraz, Fritz, Andreescu advance to Miami Open 3rd round
Updated 25 March 2023

Alcaraz, Fritz, Andreescu advance to Miami Open 3rd round

Alcaraz, Fritz, Andreescu advance to Miami Open 3rd round
  • No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka beat Shelby Rogers 6-4, 6-3 and extended her record to 4-0 versus Rogers

MIAMI GARDENS, Florida: Carlos Alcaraz picked up a straight-set win at the Miami Open on Friday to keep his world No. 1 ranking over idle Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic is not participating in the Miami Open because he still cannot travel to the US as a foreign citizen who is not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Alcaraz, who beat Casper Ruud in the 2022 US Open final for his first No. 1 ranking, defeated Facundo Bagnis 6-0, 6-2 to advance to the third round in Miami.

Rafael Nadal dropped out of the top 10 on Monday for the first time in 18 years. Alcaraz, a 19-year-old from Spain, rose into that spot a day after ending Daniil Medvedev’s 19-match winning streak by beating him in straight sets in the final at Indian Wells, California.

Ruud, who’s ranked No. 4, won his match against Ilya Ivashka 6-2, 6-3. He’ll face No. 26 Botic van de Zandschulp on Sunday in the third round.

No. 1 American and No. 9 seed Taylor Fritz began his tournament campaign with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Emilio Nava. Fritz is 17-1 in his opening rounds of hard court tournaments since the start of 2022, with his only loss coming at the 2022 US Open to No. 303 Brandon Holt.

Fritz will next face No. 24 Denis Shapovalov, who defeated Guido Pella on Friday.

On the women’s side, Bianca Andreescu — the 2019 US Open champion — came from a set down to oust No. 7 seed Maria Sakkari 5-7, 6-3, 6-4. Andreescu improved to 2-1 over Sakkari, with both wins coming in Miami.

Andreescu will face Sofia Kenin in the third round.

No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka beat Shelby Rogers 6-4, 6-3 and extended her record to 4-0 versus Rogers. Sabalenka will face No. 31 Marie Bouzkova in the third round.

No. 5 Caroline Garcia lost to Sorana Cirstea 6-2, 6-3. Cirstea beat Garcia 10 days ago in the fourth round at Indian Wells, and will face Karolína Muchova next.

In other action, Varvara Gracheva defeated No. 4 Ons Jabeur 6-2, 6-2; and Jannik Sinner beat Laslo Đere 6-4, 6-2.


Rahm ousted while Scheffler, McIlroy advance at Match Play

Rahm ousted while Scheffler, McIlroy advance at Match Play
Updated 25 March 2023

Rahm ousted while Scheffler, McIlroy advance at Match Play

Rahm ousted while Scheffler, McIlroy advance at Match Play
  • Rahm became the only top-six seed ousted in group play as Horschel never trailed in delivering the Spaniard’s second defeat
  • 16 group winners, 12 of them Americans, advanced to knockout rounds

WASHINGTON: Second-ranked Spaniard Jon Rahm was eliminated after Friday’s group stage finales at the WGC Match Play Championship while defending champion Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy advanced.

Rahm, a three-time PGA winner this year, lost to 2021 WGC Match Play champion Billy Horschel 5 and 4 at Austin Country Club in Texas, where 16 group winners, 12 of them Americans, advanced to knockout rounds.

Rahm didn’t make a birdie and became the only top-six seed ousted in group play as Horschel never trailed in delivering the Spaniard’s second defeat.

“To succeed on a hole-by-hole basis, on a swing-by-swing basis and just add those good swings up one after another, puts a lot of confidence in that tank that I’ve needed for a little bit of time now,” reigning Memorial champion Horschel said.

Scheffler beat South Korean 17th seed Tom Kim 3 and 2 to win his group at a perfect 3-0.

Reigning Masters champion Scheffler, who won the Players Championship earlier this month, booked a last-16 berth against US 43rd seed J.T. Poston.

“I’m just trying to go out and hit good shots, keep doing what I’m doing and executing,” Scheffler said. “I’ve seen some good results recently and I’m hoping to keep that going moving forward.”

McIlroy, the 2015 Match Play winner, never trailed in beating US 20th seed Keegan Bradley 3 and 2 to reach the last 16.

The four-time major winner from Northern Ireland won the fourth and fifth holes with birdies and the seventh on a Bradley bogey then played level from there to start 3-0.

“As every day goes by... the more and more confidence I’m getting with it, which is great,” McIlroy said.

“I struck the ball well and sort of got up early, kept pressure on Keegan. It was nice to get through to the weekend.”

Next for McIlroy is Australian 46th seed Lucas Herbert, who never trailed in beating US 62nd seed Ben Griffin 3&1 to finish 3-0.

Herbert sank a 20-foot eagle putt at the par-5 16th and a 17-foot birdie at the par-3 17th to advance.

US 59th seed Matt Kuchar, the oldest entrant at 44, routed South Korea’s Kim Si-woo 7 and 6 to advance. The 2013 Match Play champion equaled the event record set by Tiger Woods with his 36th match win.

“To tie Tiger’s mark, I don’t know if I have words to put that into perspective,” Kuchar said. “I’m hugely proud, grateful, kind of shellshocked to be in the same sentence with him.”

Kuchar, into the round of 16 for a record ninth time, will next face Australian 32nd seed Jason Day, the 2014 and 2016 winner who beat US two-time major champion Collin Morikawa 4 and 3 to stay perfect.

“He just tied Tiger’s record so that just shows how difficult he is to beat,” Day said of Kuchar. “If he has a good day on the greens it’s going to be difficult to beat him.”

Kuchar was among four lowest group seeds to advance.

US fourth seed Patrick Cantlay also made a 3-0 start, edging compatriot Brian Harman 2and 1 to book a last-16 date with US 13th seed Sam Burns, who reached 3-0 by closing with back-to-back birdies to beat Irishman Seamus Power 2 up.

Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, the 2021 Masters champion, forfeited his match against US fifth seed Max Homa with a stiff neck, advancing the unbeaten American into the last 16.

Unbeaten US 61st seed J.J. Spaun birdied the last four holes to rally past Australian Min Woo Lee 2 and 1 and book a last-16 date with reigning Olympic champion Xander Schauffele, the US sixth seed who sank a 13-foot birdie putt at 18 to edge Tom Hoge 1 up and stay perfect.

Kurt Kitayama, who won three weeks ago at Bay Hill, won a three-man playoff to reach a last-16 date with fellow American Andrew Putnam.


Mane scores on return to action with Senegal

Mane scores on return to action with Senegal
Updated 25 March 2023

Mane scores on return to action with Senegal

Mane scores on return to action with Senegal
  • Mohamed Salah netted Egypt’s opener in a 2-0 win over Malawi

CAPE TOWN, South Africa: Sadio Mane put his World Cup disappointment behind him by scoring on his return to international action as Senegal swept past Mozambique 5-1 in African Cup of Nations qualifying on Friday.

Mane darted behind the defense to poke home a pass by Youssouf Sabaly with his left foot for the reigning African champion’s second goal in Dakar.

Mohamed Salah netted Egypt’s opener in a 2-0 win over Malawi.

And there was also a successful return for Ivory Coast striker Sebastien Haller, who scored to help his country beat Comoros 3-1 in his first international since his comeback after receiving treatment for testicular cancer.

Mane smiled as he celebrated his goal with teammates, who had to do without their star player at the World Cup last year after he was injured just before the tournament.

Without Mane, Senegal was knocked out by England in the round of 16 at the World Cup. But the convincing win over Mozambique, Mane’s first game for Senegal since before the World Cup, kept the Cup of Nations titleholder at the top of Group L with three wins from three and on course to qualify for the continental championship next year in Ivory Coast.

Sabaly scored the first goal in the ninth minute, Mane made it two in the 16th, and Iliman Ndiaye and Boulaye Dia ensured Senegal led 4-0 at halftime. Habib Diallo sent a diving header in for the fifth with two minutes to go.

Gildo Vilanculos got Mozambique’s only goal when he headed a parry by Alfred Gomis straight back past the Senegal goalkeeper to make it 4-1 early in the second half.

Senegal didn’t allow that to threaten its dominance and controlled the rest of the game, with Mane at one point urging his team not to settle for 4-1 and go forward in search of more goals. Diallo eventually delivered one.

Salah took his goal with a first-time shot from a cross in the 20th minute to give Egypt the lead against Malawi in Cairo. Omar Marmoush was credited with the second but his low shot took a wicked deflection off a Malawi defender and looped over goalkeeper Charles Thom.

Egypt had 21 shots to Malawi’s five and 75 percent possession, and the win revived the record seven-time African champion’s qualifying campaign after it lost to Ethiopia in the last round to slip to the bottom of Group D on goal difference.

Earlier Friday, Nigeria struggled to a 1-0 loss at home to Guinea-Bissau, ending the Super Eagles’ winning start to qualifying and seeing Guinea-Bissau take top spot in Group A. Nigeria aare still in position to qualify for the African Cup as the top two teams from each group qualify.

South Africa cruised to a 2-0 lead over Liberia with a double by striker Lyle Foster, but Liberia fought back for a draw with Mohammed Sangare’s equalizer coming in injury time at Soccer City in Soweto. That hurt South Africa’s hopes of qualifying and deeply frustrated coach Hugo Broos, who walked out of a news conference after telling reporters he wouldn’t answer any of their questions.

“There is too much disappointment, too much frustration, too much anger in my body,” Broos said. “If I should say now what I think, it would not be nice.”
 


Mbappe delivers for France again in first game as captain

Mbappe delivers for France again in first game as captain
Updated 25 March 2023

Mbappe delivers for France again in first game as captain

Mbappe delivers for France again in first game as captain
  • Romelu Lukaku underlined his enduring value to Belgium by scoring all three goals in a 3-0 win at Sweden in the other notable victory on Friday

PARIS: Kylian Mbappe delivered for France again, this time wearing the captain’s armband.

Leading a new era for Les Bleus, there was something very familiar about the way Mbappe slotted home two unforgiving finishes to headline a 4-0 win over the Netherlands in European Championship qualifying on Friday.

France showed no lasting effects from that painful penalty-shootout loss to Argentina in the World Cup final three months ago. Nor did Mbappe, the scorer of a hat trick in a losing cause that day.

One of his first touches against the Dutch was to slip a pass inside for Antoine Griezmann, his hair dyed pink, to finish first time for the opening goal inside two minutes at the Stade de France. The two stars embraced, showing there was no lingering feud after Griezmann — the more experienced of the pair — was overlooked for the captaincy in favor of Mbappe following Hugo Lloris’ retirement.

Dayot Upamecano bundled in the second in the eighth minute, and the third goal in a dazzling opening 20 minutes by France was scored by Mbappe. He ran in behind the Netherlands defense and shot inside the near post after Randal Kolo Muani let a pass from Aurelien Tchouaméni roll past him.

Mbappe completed the thrashing in the 88th with a solo goal, picking up the ball 40 meters out and producing a series of feints on the edge of the area before blasting a low shot beyond goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen.

It took the Paris Saint-Germain striker onto 38 international goals, above Karim Benzema into fifth place on France’s all-time list. While Benzema’s time might be up for the national team, Mbappe — aged 24 and the leader of the new wave of soccer superstars after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo — is really only getting started.

Speaking of starts, this was a disappointing way for Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman to begin his second spell in charge of the team. Robbed of key midfielder Frenkie de Jong because of injury and five players during the week because of a flu virus, the Dutch were swarmed all over in a one-sided Group B game as qualifying for Euro 2024 continued.

Their misery was complete when Memphis Depay had a penalty saved by France goalkeeper Mike Maignan with virtually the last kick of the match.

Lukaku hat trick

Romelu Lukaku underlined his enduring value to Belgium by scoring all three goals in a 3-0 win at Sweden in the other notable victory on Friday.

It was a successful start to Domenico Tedesco’s tenure as coach of Belgium, which is also playing under a new captain in Kevin De Bruyne.

Tedesco will know the importance of having Lukaku healthy if the Red Devils are to finally win an international trophy.

The striker wasn’t fully fit at the World Cup and that was a big reason why Belgium went out in the group stage. Lukaku has been playing regularly for Inter Milan since then, and was a constant threat against Sweden as he scored in the 35th, 49th and 83rd minutes.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Sweden’s 41-year-old striker, came off the bench for his first national team appearance in nearly a year and had a couple of chances to score.

Loss for Lewandowski

Euro 2024 could be the last major international tournament for 34-year-old Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski, though Poland’s bid to make it to Germany got off to a sticky start.

Poland lost 3-1 at the Czech Republic, which went ahead when Ladislav Krejcí scored after 27 seconds — the earliest goal netted by the national team in its history.

Tomas Cvancara and Jan Kuchta also were on target for the Czechs as Lewandowski was kept scoreless in the Group E game.

Austria beat Azerbaijan 4-1 in the group containing Belgium and Sweden, with on-loan Manchester United midfielder Marcel Sabitzer scoring twice, and Greece won at Gibraltar 3-0 in France’s group.

There were wins for Serbia (2-0 at home to Lithuania) and Montenegro (1-0 at Bulgaria) in Group G.