BEIJING: Italy’s World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi has been appointed head coach of the Chinese Super League champions Guangzhou Evergrande, the club said on Thursday.
Lippi, who led the Azzurri to the 2006 World Cup, replaces South Korea’s Lee Jang-soo at the big-spending Chinese club.
“According to the club’s strategic development needs, a considered decision has been made to appoint Mr. Marcello Lippi to serve as head coach for the Guangzhou Evergrande football club,” a statement on the club’s website said.
“The appointment is for two years and six months.” Guangzhou grabbed global headlines by signing Argentine Dario Conca last year for an undisclosed sum that is speculated to have broken Chinese transfer records and the club have made it to the last 16 stage of the Asian Champions League.
As a club coach, Lippi won several Serie A titles and the Champions League with Juventus. The 64-year old Italian took Italy’s reins again for the 2010 finals in South Africa but the defending champions were packed off at the group stage without winning a game.
“I have paid attention to the club and watched games in recent months, including games of the Chinese Super League and AFC Champions league,” Lippi said in a news conference at a hotel in China’s southern industrial city of Guangzhou.
“Now I can tell every player in the team. But I just know their numbers for the moment, I will gradually remember their names.
“I began to talk to my assistants and I successfully persuaded them to come here along with me.”
Graft, match-fixing scandals and crowd violence have often dogged Chinese soccer driving fans away from the game. The performance of the national team, who failed to qualify for the 2014 World Cup despite employing former Spain coach Jose Antonio Camacho, has also demoralized the supporters.
FROM: REUTERS
Lippi named coach of China’s Guangzhou Evergrande
Lippi named coach of China’s Guangzhou Evergrande
Babar holds key for success as unpredictable Pakistan gear up for World Cup
- Pakistan has experienced massive changes in its cricket board since T20 World Cup 2022
ISLAMABAD: The return of tried and tested Babar Azam as captain for the Twenty20 World Cup belies the massive changes in Pakistan cricket over the last 18 months.
Since Babar’s team lost the T20 World Cup final to England in November 2022, the Pakistan Cricket Board has had four chairmen, the selection panel has been overhauled, and the experiment with Shaheen Shah Afridi as skipper was quickly aborted.
A new head coach for the limited-overs formats joined the squad in England just weeks ahead of the June 1-29 World Cup in the US and Caribbean.
And to top it off, Pakistan will be the last team to confirm its 15-member World Cup squad as it continues to experiment with various combinations.
Babar is urging supporters to be patient, and there’s a plan in place for success.
Babar stepped down from all-formats captaincy during the tenure of Zaka Ashraf as head of the PCB after Pakistan failed to qualify for the semifinals of the 50-over World Cup in India last year.
But he was reinstated as T20 captain by Mohsin Naqvi — the fourth PCB chairman in less than 14 months — ahead of home series against New Zealand in April after Afridi lost the series in New Zealand 4-1.
Allrounder Imad Wasim and fast bowler Mohammad Amir came out of international retirement in the hope that their experience of playing in the Caribbean Premier League will benefit Pakistan in the West Indies.
South African Gary Kirsten, who was appointed last month as head coach, will gain some first-hand knowledge of the Pakistan squad during a four-match series in England that both teams are using to rehearse for the World Cup.
All these off-the-field happenings have impacted Pakistan’s preparations for the tournament.
It badly lost the away series to New Zealand, scraped to a drawn 2-2 series at home against the Black Caps and lost a T20 series against Afghanistan 2-1. A shock loss to Ireland in Dublin preceded back-to-back wins and 2-1 series result.
And so unpredictable Pakistan enters another world tournament as a team to watch because of its rich history in the T20 World Cup. It has featured in three finals, winning the title in 2009, and also reached the semifinals three other times.
One of Kirsten’s coaching tips has already resonated with the players.
“Gary told us, don’t play for the name on the back of your jersey but for the badge in front of your shirt,” Afridi told a PCB podcast. “And that stayed with me.”
The depth in its pace bowling, with the likes of Afridi, fit-again Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah and Amir, can pose a threat to any team. But Pakistan’s top-order batting was still unsettled going into the series in England. Left-hander Saim Ayub is yet to fire in his role after selectors decided to separate the successful T20 opening pair of Babar and Mohammad Rizwan.
Babar has faced criticism for not pushing the scoring rate in the T20 power play, particularly while batting first. Pakistan has mostly aimed for totals in the 170-180 range while other teams have crossed 200 on regular basis.
Political tensions between Pakistan and India means there hasn’t been a bilateral series for over a decade, but the ICC tournaments always attracts a huge TV audience when the archrivals meet.
Pakistan and India will play a group game on June 9 at a newly built 34,000-capacity Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York that will be the center of attention for South Asian communities.
Both teams are expected to advance to the Super 8 stage from a group that also contains tournament co-host US, Canada and Ireland.
Babar has twice gone close to lifting the trophy as captain, losing to eventual champion Australia in the 2021 semifinals and to England in the final in the Melbourne final the following year.
And for that, he’ll get the distinction of becoming the first player to lead a country in three successive T20 World Cups and will be aiming for third time lucky if his Pakistan lineup can reach the June 29 decider in Barbados.
Jeddah Superdome to host return of WWE King and Queen of the Ring
- Likes of Cody Rhodes, Logan Paul and Becky Lynch will take part in the action this weekend
JEDDAH: WWE is set to return to Saudi Arabia with the double-header of SmackDown and King and Queen of the Ring this weekend at Jeddah’s Superdome.
The action will kick off on May 24 with the Kingdom’s inaugural SmackDown event, which will be broadcast live globally.
WWE superstars will battle it out in the semifinals of the the King and Queen of the Ring, with the finals taking place on May 25.
The Superdome, the world’s largest pillarless structure of its kind, will host the first King of The Ring event to take place since 2015, and the first crowning of a Queen of The Ring since the inaugural Queen’s Crown Tournament, which took place at WWE Crown Jewel in Riyadh in 2021.
The match card for this weekend includes:
Undisputed WWE Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Logan Paul
WWE King and Queen of the Ring is set to be headlined by Cody Rhodes and Logan Paul in a Championship vs. Championship match. Rhodes will be mounting a defense of his new Undisputed WWE Championship after he solidified his reign at WWE Backlash: France.
WWE Women’s Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Liv Morgan
Women’s World Champion Becky Lynch will put her title on the line against Liv Morgan. Lynch won the title in a battle royal after Rhea Ripley was forced to vacate the title after suffering an injury from Morgan backstage. Lynch last eliminated Morgan in the battle royal, but The Liv Morgan Revenge Tour continues with her latest shot at dethroning the champion.
Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn vs. Chad Gable vs. Bronson Reed (Triple Threat Match)
Sami Zayn will put the Intercontinental Title on the line in a Triple Threat Match against Chad Gable and “Big” Bronson Reed at WWE King and Queen of the Ring. After ending Gunther’s historic title reign at Wrestlemania 40, Zayn was challenged by Gable despite his help in ending the longest Intercontinental Title reign in WWE history. Reed also attacked Zayn and Gable to set his own claim to the title. As a result, all three will battle for the championship.
Queen of the Ring final
There is just one match left until the Queen of the Ring Final, and Bianca Belair and Nia Jax will battle it out to make it there. Belair bested Candice LeRae and Tiffany Stratton, setting up a meeting with Jax, who took out Naomi and Jade Cargill in the tournament.
Belair and Jax have never faced each other one-on-one and with the crown just inches away, each Superstar will be out to prove herself. The winner will face Lyra Valkyria, who won her place in the final after Monday Night Raw this week, in a match against Iyo Sky.
King of the Ring final
On Friday Night SmackDown, Randy Orton and Tama Tonga will compete for a position in the King of the Ring final against Gunther, who defeated Jey Uso in the semifinal match on Monday Night Raw.
Orton made his way into the semifinal after taking out AJ Styles and Carmelo Hayes, while Tama Tonga bested Angelo Dawkins and LA Knight. Before this year, Orton had not yet won a single King of the Ring Match in his career. Now he is set on making his promise to eliminate The Bloodline to advance to the final match on Saturday night.
Saudi Arabia gears up for first Esports World Cup
- The competition will bring together more than 2,500 gamers
- The tournament will support the Kingdom’s efforts to elevate the world of esports and highlight its positive impact on society
RIYADH: Riyadh is set to host the first-ever Esports World Cup.
The competition, which will take place at Boulevard Riyadh City from July 4 to Aug. 25, will bring together more than 2,500 gamers representing elite teams and clubs. The event features a prize pool of $60 million, the largest in esports history.
Powered by the Esports World Cup Foundation, the tournament aims to propel the e-gaming industry forward while creating promising opportunities for players and multi-team clubs.
The largest event in esports history, it will unite a global community that includes players, fans, game producers and publishers, with a focus on fostering connections and collaborations.
The unprecedented size of the prize pool means the cup is poised to become a milestone for the EWCF, which seeks to attract top talent and celebrate the popularity of esports.
The tournament will support the Kingdom’s efforts to elevate the world of esports and highlight its positive impact on society.
It will play a vital role in promoting cultural exchange and encouraging brands and companies to invest in the sector.
FIA president praises growth of motorsport industry in Oman
- Mohammed Ben Sulayem held talks with senior government officials during visit
MUSCAT: FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem has held talks with senior government officials in Oman to discuss the growth of motorsports and efforts to bring sustainable mobility initiatives to the country.
Ben Sulayem reaffirmed the FIA’s support for Oman’s development projects and said: “I was delighted to learn more about the growth of motorsport in Oman during the various meetings. The government is supporting grassroots development plans to ensure that motor sport will thrive in the years to come.”
He added: “I applaud the excellent work that is being undertaken by the Oman Automobile Association under the direction of Chairman Brigadier Salem Al-Maskiry in the areas of both sport and mobility.”
The president’s visit was hosted by the Oman Automobile Association, which was founded in 1979 and currently has over 10,500 members.
During the trip, he met with Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth Sayyid Theyazin Bin Haitham Al-Said, Secretary General Royal Court Affairs Nasr Hamoud Al-Kindi, and Minister of Housing and Urban Planning Khalfan Bin Saeed Al-Shueili.
He also enjoyed a visit to the Royal Opera House and shared a convivial dinner with Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed Al-Zubair, president of the Oman Olympic Committee.
Later this year, the OAA will host the iRracing FIA F4 Esports tournament, which will feature the Middle East and North Africa International Karting Trophy.
Drifting and remote-control racing are also thriving sports in Oman. The country has benefited from FIA grant funding in recent years, including for safety training for both baja and cross country competitions.
On the mobility side, the FIA and OAA co-hosted an environmental seminar which featured more than 30 participants from 14 regional sport and mobility clubs. The event provided a unique opportunity for the FIA and its members to share knowledge and experiences about environmental challenges in MENA countries.
Presentations and discussions focused on the FIA’s environmental strategy and the tools available to support clubs in organizing more sustainable events.
Club representatives also took part in a session aimed at furthering understanding of climate change, empowering them to become proactive contributors to taking action.
Ronaldo leads Roshn Saudi Pro League stars set to boost their nations at Euro 2024
- Aleksandar Mitrovic and N’Golo Kante among 15 players expected in Germany at end of the SPL season
RIYADH: Several Roshn Saudi Pro League players are preparing to join their nations for the Euro 2024 tournament taking place from June 14 to July 14 in Germany.
The 24-team tournament kicks off at Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena and ends with the final at the Olympiastadion.
As things stand, and fitness permitting, this year’s edition will have 15 players from seven SPL teams taking part.
According to the Transfermarkt website, these SPL players, most of whom moved to the Kingdom last summer, are valued at an estimated total of $267 million. The collective market value of all players participating in Euro 2024 stands at an impressive $12 billion.
Leading the pack is Al-Nasser with four players expected to compete at Euro 2024, led by superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. Joining him in the Portuguese squad will be Otavio, while Aymeric Laporte will represent Spain, and Marcelo Brozovic will run out for Croatia. The four players have a combined market value of $96 million.
Two Saudi Arabia clubs will have three players representing their countries at Euro 2024.
The newly crowned SPL champions Al-Hilal will provide the Serbian duo of Aleksander Mitrovic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, while midfielder Reuben Neves joins Portugal. The three stars are worth $112 million.
Al-Okhdood, somewhat surprisingly considering the number of foreign talent at the top four clubs, are the other team to have three players heading to the European showcase. The Romania pair of Andrei Burca and Florin Tanase, as well as Georgia’s center-half Solomon Kvirkvelia, are valued at $7.7 million.
Al-Ettifaq will have the Netherlands’ Georginio Wijnaldum and Scotland’s Jack Hendry who are valued at $8.3 million. Al-Ahli center-half Merih Demiral, valued at $19.4 million, is expected to join Turkiye’s squad, while Damac’s midfielder Nicolae Stanciu, valued at $5.4 million, will represent Romania.
Rounding out the roster is Al-Ittihad’s French midfield star and World Cup winner N’Golo Kante with a market value of $10.8 million.
