BAKU: Aaron Ramsey and Connor Roberts scored as Wales took a huge step toward reaching the last 16 at Euro 2020 with a 2-0 win over Turkey in Baku on Wednesday.
Turkey is facing an uphill challenge to reach the knockout stages after losing their first two Group A matches without scoring.
Wales, semifinalists five years ago, should have won more convincingly, but wasted several chances including a second-half penalty which was blazed over by captain Gareth Bale.
Turkey coach Senol Gunes dropped Juventus defender Merih Demiral after he scored an own goal in Friday’s tournament-opening defeat in Italy.
Robert Page kept the same Wales side from Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Switzerland in Baku.
A hostile crowd was expected due to the close links between Ankara and Baku due to a centuries-long relationship solidified with Turkey’s support of Azerbaijan in last year’s conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Every early Wales touch was welcomed with whistles from the 30,000 crowd, with up to 4,000 Turkish fans having traveled, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
In a very open first half an hour both sides had very good chances to open the scoring including Turkey skipper Burak Yilmaz, whose effort was deflected out for a corner, and Wales’ Ramsey.
With opportunities at both ends as the two teams refused to sit back, the Crescent Stars had two efforts blocked by last-gasp defending on the 30-minute mark.
With two minutes of the half remaining the vocal home support were stunned into silence by Ramsey’s opener.
Bale found Ramsey free in the box and the Juventus man chested the ball down before side-footing coolly past Ugurcan Cakir, making amends for missing two glorious earlier chances.
The muted crowd rediscovered their voices after the interval as Turkey pressed forward for an equalizer, their best chance falling to Yilmaz who sent his volley from close range high into the stands.
The game remained open going into the final 30 minutes and Ramsey was just stopped from adding a second as Cakir blocked with his foot, before Bale had an opportunity to seal the three points.
He charged into the box and was tripped by Zeki Celik but the one-time most expensive player in the world fired his penalty over the crossbar.
Page brought Ethan Ampadu on for the tiring Joe Allen, one of just two players remaining from the starting team in the semifinal defeat to Portugal in 2016, with a quarter of an hour left before Gunes sent on Halil Dervisoglu to partner Yilmaz up front.
Turkey, who were knocked out of the group stage in France at the previous tournament, applied incessant pressure in the closing moments.
With three minutes left the previously dropped Demiral had a golden chance but his free header from a Hakan Calhanoglu corner was wasted.
A scuffle broke out in the Wales box at the start of injury time after a collision on the floor and Ben Davies, Chris Mepham and Yilmaz were shown yellow cards before Page’s men claimed a second goal.
Bale powered into the box from a short corner, found Roberts and the Swansea right-back claimed his second international goal to send the 400 Wales fans into pandemonium behind the goal.
Turkey face Switzerland in the Azeri capital on Sunday while Wales head to Rome at the same time.
Wales beat Turkey to close on Euro 2020 knockout stage
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Wales beat Turkey to close on Euro 2020 knockout stage
- Turkey faces an uphill challenge to reach the knockout stages after losing their first two Group A matches without scoring
- Turkey coach dropped Juventus defender Merih Demiral who scored an own goal in Friday's defeat against Italy
West Indies knock England out of Women’s T20 World Cup as Joseph leads spectacular chase
- The 2016 champions finished with 142-4 in 18 overs in reply to England’s 141-7, winning with 12 deliveries to spare and making the cut from Group B
- It is the first time since 2010 that England have failed to make the semifinals
DUBAI: Qiana Joseph hit 52 runs off 38 balls as she led a spectacular West Indies chase to knock England out of the Women’s T20 World Cup on Tuesday.
Joseph’s half century, propped up by skipper Hayley Matthews’ 50 off 38 balls, helped West Indies win by six wickets in the final league game of the tournament.
The 2016 champions finished with 142-4 in 18 overs in reply to England’s 141-7, winning with 12 deliveries to spare and making the cut from Group B.
The win was sufficient for West Indies to join South Africa in the knockouts. The Proteas’ qualification was confirmed after the first innings ended, leaving England to defend the total for a place in the semifinals.
It is the first time since 2010 that England have failed to make the semifinals. Australia and New Zealand already progressed from Group A, and will take on South Africa and West Indies in the semifinals, respectively.
Earlier, West Indies won the toss and opted to bowl in a must-win game for both sides. Coming into the fixture, England had history and form on their side — they hadn’t lost to their opponent in 14 matches, and had won three successive games in Group B.
It didn’t make the best of starts though as in-form Danielle Wyatt-Hodge was out caught for 16, while Maia Bouchier was out for 14. Alice Capsey was also run out for one leaving England at 34-3 in 6.1 overs.
Nat Sciver-Brunt led the recovery with 57 not out off 50 balls, and put on 46 off 36 balls with skipper Heather Knight.
Knight sustained a calf injury during the innings and retired hurt for 21 off 13 balls. It took away momentum from England, with West Indies making a comeback through leg break bowler Afy Fletcher.
She picked 3-21 in four overs, and squeezed runs in the middle part of the English innings, as Sciver-Brunt looked for more support.
England went from 94-3 to 135-7 in the space of 30 deliveries, but still managed to put a fighting total on the board by scoring 31 runs in the final three overs.
West Indies came out swinging as Joseph opened the innings after a gap of two games and targeted the leg side with some big hits.
She hit six fours and two sixes to blow the English attack away. At the other end, Matthews attacked too, hitting seven fours and a six, as the duo scored a tournament-high 67-0 in the power play.
In all, they put on 102 runs off 74 balls for the first wicket. Sciver-Brunt got the breakthrough in the 13th over, while Sarah Glenn dismissed Matthews five balls later. Shemaine Campbell (5) was also run out to give England hope.
But Deandra Dottin continued the momentum with two fours and two sixes — scoring 27 off 19 balls — to help West Indies across the finish line with plenty to spare.
NFL names Atlanta to host Super Bowl 62 in 2028
- Atlanta first hosted the Super Bowl in 1994, when Dallas beat Buffalo 30-13 at the Georgia Dome, which also hosted the then-St. Louis Rams beating Tennessee 23-16 in 2000
- Arthur Blank: This is a tremendous honor for the city of Atlanta
NEW YORK: Atlanta has been named the host city for Super Bowl 62 in 2028, the NFL announced on Tuesday, marking the fourth time the 1996 Olympic host will stage the championship spectacle.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the 71,000-seat home of the NFL Atlanta Falcons which opened in 2017, will be the site of the contest, which has not had an exact date fixed.
“Renowned for its hospitality and rich sports and entertainment culture, Atlanta is a world-class event destination and a natural fit for Super Bowl 62,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement.
Atlanta first hosted the Super Bowl in 1994, when Dallas beat Buffalo 30-13 at the Georgia Dome, which also hosted the then-St. Louis Rams beating Tennessee 23-16 in 2000.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium first hosted the Super Bowl in 2019, when the New England Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3.
“This is a tremendous honor for the city of Atlanta,” Falcons owner Arthur M. Blank said in a statement. “Thank you to my fellow owners for their trust in awarding Atlanta this opportunity.”
Next February’s Super Bowl will be played at the Superdome in New Orleans with California venues hosting in 2026 and 2027 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara and SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles respectively.
Lenovo will be FIFA’s technology partner for 2026 World Cup and 2027 Women’s World Cup
- Infantino: At FIFA, we are committed to growing the game globally and making football accessible for all — and we are excited to welcome Lenovo to our journey
- Lenovo will supply ThinkPad laptops and tablets as well as Motorola mobile phones for the tournaments to the competing teams, FIFA’s staff and the various host nation organizing committees
Lenovo has signed on to be the official technology partner for FIFA, which includes the 2026 World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico as well as the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
The announcement was made during Lenovo’s Tech World innovation event in Seattle on Tuesday.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement the deal will continue to upgrade fan experiences as well as continue to make data more accessible to fans and teams.
“At FIFA, we are committed to growing the game globally and making football accessible for all — and we are excited to welcome Lenovo to our journey, and to work with them to implement technologies, innovations and programs that spread our sport. Data and technology combined helps us to know fans better,” he said.
The 2026 World Cup will take place from June 11 through July 19 in 16 cities throughout North America. It will also see the tournament expand from 32 to 48 teams.
The 2027 Women’s World Cup will feature 32 teams, but the dates and host cities in Brazil have not been finalized.
Jeff Shafer, Lenovo’s head of corporate marketing, said there have been been multiple meetings with FIFA about the role of artificial intelligence in helping teams and fans better understand all the data produced during a match, but that any ideas or upgrades are still in the planning stages.
“Technology and football will absolutely enhance the experience for viewers at a specific level. That’s stuff that we’re working on right now. But we already, I think, have some really amazing and interesting ideas brewing,” Shafer said.
Lenovo will supply ThinkPad laptops and tablets as well as Motorola mobile phones for the tournaments to the competing teams, FIFA’s staff and the various host nation organizing committees.
FIFA had a significant amount of data during the recent World Cup tournaments, including detailed match reports breaking down all facets of play. Data used to be limited to possession percentages and shots, but with players wearing devices tracking movement as well as chips in soccer balls, data is available to analyze a team’s offensive formation shape or to help referee’s on offsides calls.
The available data can also be used during the game for graphics used on television or to relay statistics inside the stadium. FIFA has a six member technical study group which helps analyze data during tournaments as well as give insights and observations.
Shafer noted most of the upgrades to the fan experience will mostly begin with helping teams and players in analyzing data.
“Technology can level the playing field. The data is already there, but you’ve got some disparity between the haves and have nots within global football,” he said. “If we can provide technology that gives one or two people the ability to analyze date with some sort of competitive equality to those countries that have 10 or 15 people able to do that, it really brings a lot to the table.”
Lenovo’s addition as a FIFA partner also joins recent sponsorship announcements from Bank of America, Lays and Verizon.
“Lenovo is proud to support FIFA’s vision of leveraging technology to elevate the game, enhance the fan experience worldwide, and foster innovation that levels the playing field. We’re excited that our cutting-edge technology and AI innovation will take center stage in the upcoming tournaments, demonstrating to the world the transformative power of smarter technology,” Lenovo chairman and CEO Yuanqing Yang said in a statement.
Winners of women’s and men’s taekwondo events crowned at Saudi Games
- Ethar Hayyan and Dunya Abu Talib took gold in the women’s 49 kg and 57 kg categories, respectively
- In the men’s competitions, Riyadh Hamdi claimed gold in the 58 kg category and Mohammed Al-Suwaig in the 80 kg
RIYADH: The winners of the 57 kg and 49 kg categories of the women’s taekwondo competition at the 2024 Saudi Games, and the 80 kg and 58 kg categories of the men’s, were decided on Tuesday at Boulevard 2 in Riyadh.
Ethar Hayyan from AlUla won gold in the 49 kg women’s category, beating silver-medalist Rahma Al-Khawaher of Al-Qadisiyah in the final. Losing semi-finalists Sahaf Al-Shammari from AlUla and Fatima Awad from Al-Raed each received a bronze medal.
In the 57 kg women’s category, Dunya Abu Talib of Al-Qadisiyah took gold, Lujain Attiyah of Al-Shabab received silver, and Layan Al-Muhammadi of Herra and Wijdan Al-Atwi of Al-Ittihad claimed bronze.
In the men’s 58 kg category, Riyadh Hamdi of Al-Qadisiyah was the gold-medal winner, with Abdulilah Asiri of Abha taking silver, and Fahd Al-Sumaih of Al-Shabab and Muadh Mohammed of Al-Faisaly receiving bronze.
Mohammed Al-Suwaig from Al-Shabab triumphed in the 80 kg men’s category, ahead of Mohammed Othman, also of Al-Shabab, and Majed Mabrouk from Al-Hilal, who grabbed silver and bronze respectively.
The women’s prizes were presented by the CEO of the Saudi Games, Princess Dilayl Bint Nahar. The men received their medals from Ahmad Al-Muqayrin, a board member of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee, and Brig. Gen. Shadad Al-Omari, president of the Saudi Taekwondo Federation.
Ronaldo frustrated as Scotland hold Portugal
GLASGOW: Scotland frustrated Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal in a 0-0 draw at Hampden on Tuesday to avoid losing five consecutive competitive games for the first time ever.
The home side needed a wonder save from Craig Gordon to deny Bruno Fernandes a winner in the closing stages, but held out to secure their first point in the top tier of the Nations League.
Portugal remain on top of Group A1 but were made to wait to book their place in March’s quarter-finals.
On his 216th international appearance, Ronaldo made his 200th start for his country, more than 21 years on from his first.
However, the 39-year-old failed to add to his 133 Portugal goals and stormed off the field at full-time ranting at the officials.
Scotland have won just one of their last 16 games — a 2-0 friendly victory over Gibraltar in June — and remain without a victory in a competitive match for over a year.
But Steve Clarke’s men battled hard to stop the rot in Glasgow.
Scotland even had the best chance of the first half inside the opening five minutes when Scott McTominay headed too close to Diogo Costa from point-blank range.
Portugal quickly took control of possession without creating clear-cut chances.
Francisco Conceicao spooned over early in the second period from Ronaldo’s lay-off.
Ronaldo then fired inches wide after making himself room for a shot amid a flurry of desperate challenges from Scottish defenders.
But it was Fernandes who had the best chance to claim all three points when the Manchester United captain’s powerful low strike was brilliantly parried by Gordon and collected at the second attempt by the 41-year-old goalkeeper.
Scotland are still on course for relegation from the top tier of the Nations League as they trail Poland, who drew 3-3 with Croatia, by three points with two games remaining.
Croatia sit second, three points behind the Portuguese, who they host next month.
