AFC Champions League Elite showdowns set to be revealed in Kuala Lumpur

AFC Champions League Elite showdowns set to be revealed in Kuala Lumpur
Al-Ain FC goalkeeper Khaled El-Eissa (Source: @alainfcae)
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Updated 12 August 2024
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AFC Champions League Elite showdowns set to be revealed in Kuala Lumpur

AFC Champions League Elite showdowns set to be revealed in Kuala Lumpur
  • The League Stage draw for the West and East pots of Asia’s premier club competition will take place on Friday, Aug. 16
  • The 32 clubs in AFC Champions League Two will also find out their schedules at the event taking place at the InterContinental Kuala Lumpur

Asian club football will mark another pivotal milestone when the cast for the groundbreaking AFC Champions League Elite 2024-25 season assembles for the official League Stage draw ceremony on Friday, Aug. 16.

To be held at the InterContinental Kuala Lumpur, the event will reveal highly anticipated battles between Asia’s best 24 clubs for the maiden edition of the revamped men’s continental club competition.

The 32 clubs in AFC Champions League Two will also find out their fate at the event.

A pivotal change in the ACL Elite, the league stage format will be utilized for the first time in an AFC club competition and features two leagues of 12 teams across the West and East regions.

Scheduled to be played between Sept. 16, 2024 and Feb. 19, 2025, each team will face eight different opponents within its region in the form of four home and four away matches.

The line-up — comprising 22 teams that qualified directly and two preliminary stage winners — will be placed into two pots within each region, as below:

The West pot includes reigning champions Al-Ain FC (UAE), Al-Hilal (KSA), Al-Sadd (QAT), Persepolis FC (IRN), Pakhtakor (UZB), Al-Shorta (IRQ), Al-Nassr Club (KSA), Al-Rayyan SC (QAT), Esteghlal FC (IRN), Al-Wasl FC (UAE), Al-Ahli Saudi FC (KSA), as well as the winner of preliminary stage tie between Al-Gharafa SC (QAT) and Shabab Al-Ahli (UAE).

Meanwhile the East pot will comprise Vissel Kobe (JPN), Ulsan HD FC (KOR), Shanghai Port FC (CHN), Buriram United (THA), Central Coast Mariners (AUS), Johor Darul Ta’zim FC (MAS), Kawasaki Frontale (JPN), FC Pohang Steelers (KOR), Shanghai Shenhua FC (CHN), Yokohama F. Marinos (JPN), Gwangju FC (KOR), and the winner of preliminary stage tie between Shandong Taishan FC (CHN) and Bangkok United (THA).

The country protection principle will be in force and bespoke draw software will be used to prevent any deadlock situations from occurring.

The top eight finishers of each league progress to the round of 16, scheduled for March 2025, which will be followed by a unique centralized finals that sees all matches from the quarterfinals onwards being contested in Saudi Arabia between April 25 and May 4, 2025.

Meanwhile in AFC Champions League Two, which will featuring the greatest number of teams in any of the Asian Football Confederation’s club competitions, the new second-tier men’s tournament will comprise eight groups — four West, four East — of four teams each for the group stage, which will be played in a home-and-away round-robin format from Sept. 17 to Dec. 5.

The top two finishers from each group advance to the round of 16, to be played in February 2025. This will be followed by the quarterfinals on March 4 2025 and semifinals in April 2025, before the tournament culminates in a single-leg final on May 17, 2025.

 


Maguire salvages draw for Man United at Porto after Fernandes sent off again in Europa League

Maguire salvages draw for Man United at Porto after Fernandes sent off again in Europa League
Updated 56 sec ago
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Maguire salvages draw for Man United at Porto after Fernandes sent off again in Europa League

Maguire salvages draw for Man United at Porto after Fernandes sent off again in Europa League
  • Maguire headed home a corner in the first minute of injury time to salvage a point for United, who now have two draws in the league phase and failed to win any of their last four games in all competitions
  • A youthful Tottenham side maintained a perfect record with a 2-1 victory away at Ferencvaros , while Lazio also made it two wins out of two by routing Nice 4-1 at home

Manchester United narrowly avoided another embarrassing defeat as substitute Harry Maguire headed in an injury-time equalizer to salvage a 3-3 draw against Porto in the Europa League on Thursday after Erik ten Hag’s team had given up an early 2-0 lead and seen Bruno Fernandes sent off for a second straight game.

Fernandes was shown a second booking in the 81st minute for a high boot that caught defender Nehuen Perez as he tried to connect with a cross into the box.

“We started the game very good, we dominated, we scored two good goals but then we lost control,” Ten Hag said. “The middle part was no good and then we finished very good. ... We got the equalizer so it is good for the spirit.”

Fernandes had been shown a straight red in a 3-0 loss to Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday that upped the pressure on Ten Hag. And the Dutch manager seemed to be in more trouble when United gave up an early 2-0 lead to trail 3-2 when Pepe produced a cross from the right for his fellow forward Samu to fire his second and goal high into the net five minutes into the second half.

But Maguire headed home a corner in the first minute of injury time to salvage a point for United, who now have two draws in the league phase and failed to win any of their last four games in all competitions.

United couldn’t have asked for a better start in Portugal, though. Christian Eriksen teed up Marcus Rashford, who showed great footwork to burst into the area before beating goalkeeper Diogo Costa with a low strike into the bottom left-hand corner of the net in the seventh minute.

Eriksen was involved in the second 13 minutes later, too, as he started the move in the middle before finding Rashford to set up Rasmus Hojlund, who unleased a powerful blast inside the near post for his first goal of the season.

But Porto came right back as Pepe and Samu headed in goals within seven minutes of each other to level the score before the break.

Earlier, a youthful Tottenham side maintained a perfect record with a 2-1 victory away at Ferencvaros , while Lazio also made it two wins out of two by routing Nice 4-1 at home.

Pape Sarr gave Tottenham the lead midway through the first half when he reacted quickly to a loose ball in the area and slotted it into the net with a right-foot shot for his second goal in two games in the second-tier European competition.

Brennan Johnson came on as substitute in the second half and scored the second four minutes from time with a left-footed strike off the far post. It was the fifth goal in five games in all competitions for the Wales international.

Parnabas Varga pulled one back for Ferencvaros in the final minute.

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou made seven changes to the team that beat United at Old Trafford. Four teenagers started for Spurs, with the 19-year-old Will Lankshear making his senior debut and 17-year-old teammate Mikey Moore making his first start.

In torrential rain at Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Taty Castellano scored twice for Lazio, first making it 2-0 in the first half by lobbing the ball over goalkeeper Marcin Bulka in a one-on-one situation and then makin it 3-1 in the second half with a shot into the roof of the net.

Lyon also have two wins after beating Rangers 4-1 in Glasgow, with forward Alexandre Lacazette and Malick Fofana scoring two goals apiece.

Dutch side Twente that upset Manchester United 1-1 at Old Trafford last week, held also Jose Mourinho‘s Fenerbahce 1-1 at home.

Captain Michael Baidoo scored from the spot and Swedish club Elfsborg upset Roma 1-0. New Roma coach Ivan Juric remains with a win in the competition.

Substitute Tomas Chory headed in a second-half equalizer for Slavia to hold Ajax to a 1-1 draw in Prague. Ajax went ahead after Branco van den Boomen sent Slavia goalkeeper the wrong way from the spot in the 18th. The visitors were reduced to 10 men in the 75th after defender Youri Baas received his second yellow card.

Anderlecht came from a goal down to beat Real Sociedad 2-1 away, with Theo Leoni scoring the winner late in the first half.

Ayoub El Kaabi scored two and Santiago Hezze added another one for last year’s Conference League winner Olympiacos to beat visiting Braga 3-0.

Hoffenheim, who are struggling in the Bundesliga, recorded a 2-0 win over Dynamo Kyiv.

Eintracht Frankfurt, the 2022 Europa League winners, scored two first half goal within three minutes on the way to a 3-1 away victory at Besiktas.

Conference League

Chelsea made a winning debut in the third-tier Conference League as Renato Veiga, Pedro Neto, Christopher Nkunku and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall all scored in a 4-2 win over Belgium’s Gent at Stamford Bridge.

Fiorentina, which reached the final in the last two seasons, beat Welsh side New Saints 2-0.

In a couple of high-scoring games, Cercle Brugge routed St. Gallen 6-2 after a hat trick from Kevin Denkey, and Omonoia beat Vikingur Reykjavík 4-0 at home in Cyprus.

Legia Warsaw edged Real Betis 1-0.

Scottish side Hearts traveled a long way to Sumgayit, Azerbaijan, to take home a 2-1 victory over Belarusian champion Dinamo Minsk.

UEFA banned Russian clubs from all its events over the country’s invasion of Ukraine but has allowed Belarusian teams to keep playing despite the country’s support of Russia, as long as the games are hosted outside of Belarus without a crowd.


Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark a near-unanimous choice as WNBA’s Rookie of the Year

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark a near-unanimous choice as WNBA’s Rookie of the Year
Updated 36 min 38 sec ago
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Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark a near-unanimous choice as WNBA’s Rookie of the Year

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark a near-unanimous choice as WNBA’s Rookie of the Year
  • Panel of sportswriters and sportscasters gave Clark 66 of 67 votes in balloting released Thursday. Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese received the other
  • Clark led the league with 122 3-pointers, averaged 5.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals, and set a league single-season record with 337 assists and set rookie records of 769 points

NEW YORK: Caitlin Clark has been named the WNBA Rookie of the Year in a near-unanimous vote, giving the Indiana Fever back-to-back winners after Aliyah Boston won the honor last season.
A national panel of sportswriters and sportscasters gave Clark 66 of 67 votes in balloting released Thursday. Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese received the other.
“I am incredibly honored to be named Rookie of the Year, but more than that, I am grateful to everyone that supported me throughout this past season — my family and friends, my teammates, the Fever organization and everyone that cheered us on all season. I am so proud of what we accomplished and so excited for what the future holds,” Clark said in a statement.
Clark, the No. 1 overall pick from Iowa, averaged 19.2 points and a league-best 8.4 assists per game while helping the WNBA set attendance records and garner mainstream attention. She struggled a bit early in the season, but found her groove and was an All-Star starter. The unanimous AP Rookie of the Year led the Fever to the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and a 20-20 record after a 1-8 start.
“I’m a tough grader. I feel like I had a solid year,” Clark said after the Fever were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. “For me, the fun part is like I feel like I’m just scratching the surface and I’m the one that’s nit picking every single thing I do. I know I want to help this franchise. ... I know there’s a lot of room for me to continue to improve so that’s what excites me the most. I feel like I continue to get a lot better.”
Clark was not chosen for the US Olympic team — a decision that disappointed her legions of fans — but she showed in the weeks afterward that she might have been helpful. The Fever guard averaged 24.7 points and 9.3 assists in her first 10 games after the Olympic break and led Indiana to an 8-2 record.
Clark was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Month for August, was Player of the Week three times and Rookie of the Month four times. She recorded the first two triple-doubles by a rookie in WNBA history, set a league single-game record with 19 assists and became the first rookie to have at least 30 points and 10 assists in a game.
Clark led the league with 122 3-pointers, was second with 90.6 percent accuracy from the free-throw line and averaged 5.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals. She set a league single-season record with 337 assists and set rookie records of 769 points and 122 three-pointers made.
Reese averaged 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds for the Sky.
Off the court, Clark, Reese and their fellow rookies were a ratings and attendance boon for the WNBA. Six different league television partners set viewership records this year for its highest viewed WNBA game. All of those games included the Fever.
Indiana led the league in attendance both at home and on the road. The Fever averaged 17,036 at home and more than 15,000 on the road. Four teams moved home games to bigger arenas when Indiana came to town to accommodate more fans.
Despite Indiana’s blowout loss to Connecticut in Game 1, fans tuned in as the game averaged 1.8 million viewers, according to ESPN, making it the WNBA’s most watched playoff game since the 2000 Finals. It was the most watched playoff game on ESPN ever despite going up against the NFL.
 


Gauff rallies against qualifier to reach China Open semis against Badosa

Gauff rallies against qualifier to reach China Open semis against Badosa
Updated 04 October 2024
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Gauff rallies against qualifier to reach China Open semis against Badosa

Gauff rallies against qualifier to reach China Open semis against Badosa
  • Gauff will next play Paula Badosa of Spain, who ended local wild card Zhang Shuai’s unexpected run at the title
  • Italy’s Matteo Berrettini bounced back his Japan Open disappointment last week by squeezing past Christopher O’Connell 7-6, (9) 7-6 (6) in the Shanghai first round

BEIJING: Sixth-ranked Coco Gauff again made a slow start and had to rally to beat Ukrainian qualifier Yuliia Starodubtseva 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 to make the China Open semifinals on Thursday for a second straight year.

Gauff will next play Paula Badosa of Spain, who ended local wild card Zhang Shuai’s unexpected run at the title.

The No. 115-ranked Yuliia Starodubtseva — who will crack the top 100 for the first time on Monday — had not lost a set in her three matches this week and quickly took the lead, making 10 winners and holding Gauff to zero in an error-strewn first set for the American.

Gauff also lost the first set against Naomi Osaka in the previous round before Osaka retired because of a lower back injury.

Starodubtseva last month became the first woman in the Open era to qualify for all four Grand Slam tournaments in the same year, and former US Open champion Gauff found a response against her.

Gauff saved two break points in her opening service game of the second set. A service break propelled her ahead 3-1. After another narrow escape on her next service game, Gauff lost only three more games for the rest of the quarterfinal.

“I can’t control how I play or how she plays, but I can just try to control my mindset and commit to the process,” Gauff said.

Zhang’s drought-busting week came to a shuddering halt as Badosa continued her own resurgence in a 6-1, 7-6 (4) victory in their quarterfinal.

The Spaniard has won 28 of her last 35 matches dating to May and made the semifinals of three of her past five tournaments. There was also a run to the US Open quarterfinals last month.

But the story of the week has been the 35-year-old Zhang, who entered the China Open on a 24-match losing streak — the second longest in the Open era — and ranked No. 595. She didn’t drop a set in four previous matches this week.

The Chinese wild card had no answer, though, to Badosa’s fast start as the Spaniard made three service breaks to comfortably claim the opening set.

It was much closer in the second set as Badosa found herself down 3-1. She rallied and edged Zhang in the tiebreak.

Shanghai Masters

Italy’s Matteo Berrettini bounced back from the disappointment of an injury ending his Japan Open last week by squeezing past Christopher O’Connell 7-6, (9) 7-6 (6) in the Shanghai first round.

The Italian, who retired with an abdominal injury in the second round in Tokyo last Friday, had his fitness given a stern examination by the Australian in a lung-busting match lasting two hours, 13 minutes.

Next up for the former Wimbledon finalist is No. 14-ranked Holger Rune.

Other first-round winners included Marcos Giron, David Goffin, Jaume Munar, Zhou Yi, Jakub Mensik and Miomir Kecmanovic.

The 32 seeded players received a first-round bye, including top-ranked Jannik Sinner and second-ranked Carlos Alcaraz, who won the China Open against the Italian on Wednesday. Sinner starts against Taro Daniel of Japan, and Alcaraz faces Shang Juncheng of China.


Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag

Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag
Updated 04 October 2024
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Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag

Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag

PORTO, Portugal: Erik ten Hag pleaded to be given until the end of the season as Manchester United boss after needing a late Harry Maguire equalizer to salvage a 3-3 draw at Porto in the Europa League on Thursday.
Ten Hag was under major pressure before the trip to Portugal after just two wins from United’s first six Premier League fixtures of the season left them languishing in 13th place in the table.
The Red Devils have also drawn their opening two Europa League games to sit 21st in the 36-team table.
“We will get there, don’t judge us in this moment,” said Ten Hag.
“Judge us in the end of the season. We will improve, we have two seasons where we achieved finals. Just wait, we will develop and progress this team.”
Ten Hag has fiercely defended his record after winning the League Cup and FA Cup in his first two seasons in charge at Old Trafford — ending United’s six-year trophy drought in the process.
A shock victory over Manchester City in last season’s FA Cup final was widely credited with saving his job despite finishing eighth in the Premier League.
But the United hierarchy could be forced to act in the upcoming international break after they travel to face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday.
Ten Hag could not have asked for a better start in Porto as goals from Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund put United 2-0 up inside 20 minutes
However, the English giants have failed to win any of their last four away European games despite scoring three times in each of them.
Last season they crashed out of the Champions League at the group stages after losing 4-3 at Bayern Munich and FC Copenhagen plus a 3-3 draw at Galatasaray.
Another six-goal thriller took place at the Estadio do Dragao as Pepe and Samu Omorodion brought Porto level before half-time.
Omorodion smashed the home side in front early in the second half before United captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off for the second consecutive game.
But Maguire’s header from a corner at least salvaged a point for Ten Hag.
“When you get 2-0 away from home you have to be a little bit more solid and there were far too many gaps,” said Maguire.
“Too many crosses were coming into the box for sure and they ultimately punished us for it.”
The England international has lost his regular starting spot in the side to Matthijs de Ligt, who previously worked under Ten Hag at Ajax.
Maguire said the pressure his manager was facing is what comes with the “privilege” of being in the spotlight at one of the world’s biggest clubs.
“I’ve played for this club for six years, I know how it works. When you go on a bad spell players come under pressure and also the manager does,” added Maguire.
“He’s experienced enough and been at this club long enough so I’m sure he knows how to deal with it. It’s part of the privilege you have playing for this club.”


Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic

Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic
Updated 04 October 2024
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Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic

Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic
  • ‘Basketball should, needs to be much more extended,’ he says

DUBAI: Three-time NBA’s Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic has described the formation of Dubai Basketball and its inclusion in the Adriatic Basketball Association League as a “great thing” for the sport in the Emirates.

Founded in 2023 by the UAE’s Abdulla Saeed Al Naboodah, Dubai Basketball is a newly established professional basketball franchise that is competing in Europe’s ABA for the 2024-2025 season.

Featuring a strong roster of players representing many different countries, including the Philippines, Turkiye, the US, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Jordan, Turkey, Latvia and Italy, Dubai Basketball have enjoyed an impressive debut in the league, with two wins in as many games so far.

Their upcoming test is a home clash at Coca-Cola Arena on Saturday against Serbian side Mega MIS, which is where Jokic began his professional career, spending three seasons there before getting drafted by the Denver Nuggets.

Jokic, who is in the UAE this week with the Nuggets for the NBA Abu Dhabi Games, has heard nothing but good things about Dubai Basketball.

“To be honest I think it’s a great thing for the country and for basketball,” the 2022-2023 NBA champion told reporters at the Etihad Arena on Thursday.

“I think basketball should and needs to be much more extended.

“I have a couple of friends that play in Dubai and they say it’s a good organization. They say everything is perfect, so hopefully they can extend basketball, even in this country.”

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Jokic is in Abu Dhabi for the second time in three months, having also visited the capital with the Serbian national team during the summer ahead of their Paris Olympics campaign, which saw them claim a bronze medal.

An avid fan of horse racing and owner of several horses, Jokic was asked if he will be checking out the equestrian scene in the UAE.

He said: “I want to see the horses, because that’s where the horses are best, probably. I think I don’t have time to be honest, but maybe one time.”

Despite a shortened offseason due to his Olympic commitments, Jokic is optimistic about his fitness levels entering the new NBA season.

He said: “We will see. I think the last time I played with the national team we won the championship, so that doesn’t really affect my stamina.

“Maybe I’ll be even in better shape. We’ll see when the season starts, or maybe when the season ends.”

After winning the first NBA championship in the Denver Nuggets’ 47-year franchise history in 2023, Jokic and his teammates crashed out of the playoffs the following season against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jokic said that the early exit has had “zero” effect on his motivation levels for this upcoming season — adding “last year doesn’t motivate me”  —  and explained the challenge of trying to successfully defend an NBA title, something not witnessed since the Golden State Warriors went back-to-back in 2017 and 2018.

The 29-year-old Serb said: “They always say it’s really tough to win a championship again, but I think it’s really tough to win a championship anyhow.

“After going through so many emotions, after winning a championship … it seemed like we didn’t have a break, it just felt longer, and maybe we were tired, maybe we were not.

“I think that you should just enjoy winning the championship because most really good teams never won a championship, so I think we’re supposed to be happy that we won a championship and everything else is just extra.”

Denver Nuggets will once again rely on the dynamic partnership between Jokic and Jamal Murray, but have also brought in reinforcements in the form of veteran point guard Russell Westbrook and Croatian forward/center Dario Saric.

Westbrook, who is a former NBA MVP and nine-time All-Star, has been energetic and vocal in practice so far with the Nuggets, and brings a wealth of experience and leadership skills with him from the 16 previous seasons he has played in the league.

“He’s always positive, a great teammate, on the court, off the court,” Jokic said of Westbrook. “He has been nothing but perfect right now, so hopefully he’s going to do the same thing the whole season.”

The Nuggets face reigning NBA champions the Boston Celtics in two preseason games at Etihad Arena, Yas Island, on Oct. 4 and 6, in what is the third edition of the NBA Abu Dhabi Games.