LONDON: Tottenham proved they can cope without Harry Kane and retook third place in the Premier League as Lucas Moura’s hat-trick inspired a 4-0 demolition of Huddersfield in the Premier League on Saturday.
Despite the absence of injured stars Kane and Dele Alli, Mauricio Pochettino’s much-changed side made it three victories from their first three games at the impressive Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Pochettino’s understudies filled in nicely as Kenya midfielder Victor Wanyama rolled in the opener before Brazilian forward Lucas took center-stage with an eye-catching treble.
Tottenham have settled well in their new £1 billion north London home and already relegated Huddersfield provided the ideal warm-up for Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final second leg at Manchester City.
Bidding to qualify for next season’s Champions League via a top-four finish, Tottenham are one point clear of fourth-placed Chelsea, who face leaders Liverpool on Sunday.
Bottom of the table Huddersfield have lost 19 of their last 21 league matches as their two-season stay in the top-flight grinds to a dispiriting conclusion.
It was a reassuring afternoon for Tottenham, whose 1-0 quarter-final first leg win against City on Tuesday came at a heavy cost.
Kane is likely to miss the rest of the season after suffering yet another ankle ligament injury, this time in a tackle on City’s Fabian Delph, while Alli sustained a fractured hand that left him unable to face Huddersfield.
Adding to Pochettino’s problems, England midfielder Harry Winks was ruled out of Saturday’s game with a groin injury.
But for all the panic about Kane’s injury potentially ruining Tottenham’s hopes of a successful end to the season, they have won all five of their league games without the England striker this season.
Much sterner tests than Huddersfield lie ahead, including successive Champions League and Premier League matches at City next week, so Pochettino made seven changes, leaving Son Heung-min, Danny Rose, Toby Alderweireld and Kieran Trippier on the bench.
It was a gamble to rest South Korea forward Son, who had scored two of Tottenham’s three goals at the new stadium, including the winner against City.
All eyes were on Fernando Llorente and Lucas to see if they could fill the gap left by Kane and Son up front.
Huddersfield were so limited in all areas, that Tottenham’s make-shift line-up were able to play their way into rhythm.
Showing their strength in depth, Tottenham deservedly took the lead thanks to two of their understudies in the 24th minute.
Ben Davies passed toward Llorente and the Spaniard used his strength to hold off Jon Gorenc Stankovic, allowing the ball to run to Wanyama,
Bursting into the space behind the Huddersfield defense, Wanyama cleverly rounded goalkeeper Ben Hamer before slotting into the empty net for his first goal since February 2018.
Three minutes later, Tottenham struck again. Moussa Sissoko dinked a pass into Lucas’s path and the Brazilian took a touch before drilling a fierce shot across Hamer into the far corner.
Stankovic should have done better than poke wide from Juninho Bacuna’s corner as the defender wasted a golden opportunity to give Huddersfield hope.
The often maligned Llorente has quietly had a hand in 15 goals in 18 starts for Tottenham, scoring 11 and setting up four.
He almost got another with a volley that cannoned back off the crossbar.
Lucas, a candidate to start against City, stole the show in the second half, controlling Eriksen’s pass to smash home the third goal in the 87th minute.
Lucas wasn’t content with that as he ran through to drive another fine finish past Hamer for the first hat-trick at Tottenham’s new stadium.
The former Paris Saint Germain star was cheered off as he celebrated his man of the match performance with a kickabout with his 1-year-old son on the pitch after the final whistle.
No Harry Kane? No problem as Lucas Moura treble against Huddersfield fires Spurs into third
No Harry Kane? No problem as Lucas Moura treble against Huddersfield fires Spurs into third
- Despite absence of injured stars Kane and Dele Alli, Pochettino’s side made it three wins from three
- Kane is likely to miss the rest of the season after suffering yet another ankle ligament injury
Paris Saint-Germain shut down Bayern Munich, reach CWC semis
Bayern exits the tournament after being held scoreless for the first time
ATLANTA: Desire Doué scored in the 78th minute, Ousmane Dembele added a second in stoppage time and Paris Saint-Germain sealed their place in the FIFA Club World Cup semifinals with a 2-0 quarterfinal win over Bayern Munich on Saturday in Atlanta.
Pairs Saint-Germain played the closing minutes with just nine players after a pair of red cards and still added a goal to seal the victory.
Referee Anthony Taylor dismissed Willian Pacho in the 82nd minute for his dangerous challenge on Bayern’s Thomas Muller, and sent off Lucas Hernandez in the second minute of second-half stoppage time for an elbow in the direction of Raphael Guerreiro.
But Doue and Dembele’s first goals of the tournament were enough to seal a meeting in East Rutherford, N.J., on Wednesday with the winner of Saturday’s second semifinal between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.
Gianluigi Donnarumma made five saves to keep PSG’s fourth clean sheet of the tournament.
Bayern exits the tournament after being held scoreless for the first time, on a day when they lost Josip Stanisic and Jamal Musiala to first-half injuries.
It was still 11-on-11 when Doue took Joao Neves’ pass, created some space near the edge of the penalty area, then unleashed a left-footed strike that found the bottom right corner as Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer slipped while trying to change direction.
Dembele doubled the advantage on a stunning foray forward despite the numerical disadvantage and some brilliant setup work by Achraf Hakimi, who beat three defenders off the dribble.
Hakimi then fed Dembele in stride for a first-time low finish that left Neuer little chance.
Bayern thought they had a chance to pull a late goal back when Taylor whistled for a penalty even later in stoppage time, only to reverse his decision following a video review.
Musiala departed on a stretcher at halftime after suffering a gruesome ankle injury following a tangle for the ball with Donnarumma that did not show any signs of ill intent.
Even Donnaruma was distraught after seeing the extent of Musiala’s injury, which came in the final seconds of the first half.
Twelve minutes earlier, Stanisic exited with an apparent hamstring injury.
Donnaruma made a pair of exceptional first-half saves.
In the 27th minute, he sprung to his right to parry Michael Olize’s goal-bound effort from just beyond the corner of the 6-yard box. In the 41st, he sprawled the opposite direction to keep Aleksandar Pavlovic’s effort — an intended early cross that was inches in front of Musiala near the penalty spot — from bounding inside the right post.
Neuer was also called into action during the first half, thwarting Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s effort from close range at the near post with an outstretched arm in the 32nd minute.
Four minutes into the second half, he dove left to deny Bradley Barcola on the break.
Philipsen wins nervy Tour de France opener as Evenepoel loses time
- Philipsen took the yellow jersey in a frantic sprint finish at the northern city of Lille
- Race favorites Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard both finished safely in the lead pack on a day marred by a series of falls
LILLE, France: There were mixed fortunes for the thousands of Belgian fans who poured over the border for the opening stage of the Tour de France on Saturday as Jasper Philipsen won, but star rider Remco Evenepoel lost valuable time.
Philipsen took the yellow jersey in a frantic sprint finish at the northern city of Lille, while double Olympic champion Evenepoel was trapped in a second group and lost 39 seconds.
Race favorites Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard both finished safely in the lead pack on a day marred by a series of falls.
Even defending champion Pogacar appeared flustered at the finish line.
“It was as frantic as we had expected, but when the split came fortunately I was near the front,” said the 26-year-old Slovenian.
“I’m just happy day one is done. Nine days to go before the first rest day.”
Africa’s sole rider Biniam Girmay, winner of three stages in 2024, was second on the day as Philipsen got ahead of him with 100m to go.
“It’s a day I will never forget. This is why I have been getting up early and training hard each day,” said Philipsen after notching up a 10th career stage win on the Tour.
His Alpecin team, marshalled by Mathieu van der Poel, formed an old-school sprint train that the winner hailed.
“What an experience! Those final kilometers, to be part of that,” beamed Philipsen.
Around 40 riders in the first group contested the sprint where one of the day’s many falls happened.
Primoz Roglic of Red Bull and Team UAE’s Joao Almeida were also caught in the surprise split in blustery winds.
Fans packed the route in one of France’s more modest regions passing First World War memorials, red-brick houses and slagheaps from long-closed coal mines along the Belgian border.
Under overcast skies with the temperature a manageable 22C, the peloton cut a fast pace despite the windy conditions, but no rain fell until the riders had passed the finish line.
Racing toward an intermediate sprint over cobbles, escapee Benjamin Thomas slid sideways and took out his sole rival Matteo Vercher in one spectacular fall and the pair were still bickering when the peloton shot past them.
Former time-trial world champion Filippo Ganna was one rider who will take no further part after a clumsy fall on a corner.
The Italian would have been a contender on the lengthy stage 5 individual time-trial, as well as key in the Ineos team’s campaign to get veteran Geraint Thomas into the top 10 on his 14th and final Tour de France.
Philipsen, in yellow, will lead the peloton out for Sunday’s second stage, a hilly 209km route to the beaches of Boulogne-sur-mer.
Shining Verstappen shades Piastri for pole at Silverstone
- The Monegasque driver was quickest in one minute and 25.498 seconds to outpace Piastri
- Verstappen was third for Red Bull ahead of Lando Norris in the second McLaren
SILVERSTONE, UK: Max Verstappen produced one of the finest and fastest qualifying laps of his career on Saturday to seize pole position for Sunday’s British Grand Prix and demonstrate why he is the hottest property in Formula One.
The four-time world champion was struggling with a strong wind and cool and damp conditions after choosing a low downforce set-up that trimmed his wings but enabled higher speed on the straights.
Before his final run of a tense and closely-fought qualifying hour, Verstappen was two-tenths slower than McLaren’s championship leader Oscar Piastri, but the Dutchman powered to a fastest lap of one minute and 24.892 seconds to beat the Australian by 0.103 seconds.
“You went motor racing Max!” said his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, his deadpan delivery hiding Red Bull’s delight as the team fight to find the performance that will ensure their star driver stays with them next year.
The 27-year-old Dutchman, who has declared he wants to stay, has been linked with Mercedes, whose team boss Toto Wolff has confirmed making contact. Unconfirmed Italian media reports this week claimed Verstappen had agreed to the move.
Verstappen did his talking on the track, claiming his third pole at Silverstone and the 44th of the career with a virtuoso lap to keep alive faint hopes of defending his drivers’ title in the second half of the season.
Weather permitting, a third British victory would help him trim his 61-point deficit to Piastri but if it rains, as forecast, Verstappen’s set-up might leave him vulnerable to his rivals including Lando Norris, in the second McLaren, who is 15 points behind Piastri in the title race and third on the grid.
“The changes helped a lot and the car definitely turned in better,” said Verstappen. “On my last lap, it all came together and the balance was much better and we were fast on the straights, but the high-speed corners were more difficult.
“We are pushing for more performance. It was tricky out there with the wind as the car is so sensitive to it. We have to wait to see what tomorrow will do and if there’s rain around or not.
“I’m happy with qualifying. It’s a big boost for the team as well and I’m excited to go racing tomorrow. We’ll try! We are going to have fun and try to do the best we can.”
Piastri was less happy.
“I was trying to think of how I was going to go faster and I didn’t,” he said. “The last lap was a little bit messy, but it’s been tight all weekend.
“I think my first lap was very good...but I left a little bit on the table.”
“It’s tough, especially when you think it’s a good lap. You don’t want to overdo it and try and go over the limit. There were a couple of corners where maybe I was a bit safe on the way in and tried to make up for it on the way out and it didn’t quite work.”
Norris was third in the second McLaren, a tenth adrift.
“It was tough,” Norris said. “We are not just fast enough today, but it’s all good fun and I am happy with third. Credit to Max, he did a great job. It’s going to be fun tomorrow, a good battle.”
George Russell was next in a Mercedes. The Ferraris of seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc filled the third row.
Kimi Antonelli was seventh fastest in the second Mercedes but suffered a three-place penalty.
Ollie Bearman was eighth for Haas but collected a 10-place grid penalty.
Sinner demolishes Martinez to reach Wimbledon last-16
- “Obviously very happy but I think we all saw that he was struggling with his shoulder,” said Sinner
- The Italian said his first week at Wimbledon “couldn’t have gone better“
LONDON: Imperious Wimbledon top seed Jannik Sinner made short work of Spain’s Pedro Martinez on Saturday to reach the the last 16 without dropping a set.
The Italian three-time Grand Slam champion eased past his 52nd-ranked opponent, who was struggling with a shoulder problem, 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 in less than two hours.
“Obviously very happy but I think we all saw that he was struggling with his shoulder,” said Sinner.
“He couldn’t serve very well. Especially on this surface when you don’t serve well, then it’s not easy to play.”
The Italian said his first week at Wimbledon “couldn’t have gone better.”
“Every time when you reach the second week of a Grand Slam it’s a very special occasion,” he said.
“Even more special here in Wimbledon, so I’m very happy to be in the second week.”
Sinner, a Formula One fan, said he would organize his practice schedule around the British Grand Prix, which takes place at Silverstone on Sunday.
He will face either 19th seed Grigor Dimitrov or Sebastian Ofner in the fourth round at the All England Club.
The 23-year-old took a vice-like grip on the Center Court match from the start, racing into a 5-0 lead.
Martinez was given a time-out at that point and received treatment on his right shoulder before winning the next game to love on his own serve but Sinner wrapped up the set in the following game.
The second set was tighter until Sinner broke in the fifth game, repeating the feat to take the set.
Martinez required further treatment before the third set but it had little impact as Sinner raced into a 5-0 lead.
The Spaniard, 28, held up a finger to the crowd after clawing a game back but that only delayed the inevitable.
Sinner has lost just 17 games in total across his three matches in the first week of Wimbledon, in contrast to defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, who has shown patchy form.
The Italian returned from a doping ban in May, losing the Italian Open final to Alcaraz and squandering three championship points against the same opponent in the French Open final.
His best performance at Wimbledon was a run to the semifinals in 2023 and he reached the quarters last year.
India and Bangladesh postpone cricket tour to 2026
- The series, including three one-day and three T20 matches, had been due to start on August 17 in Dhaka
- India, Bangladesh ties have turned frosty since a mass uprising last year toppled then PM Sheikh Hasina
NEW DELHI: India’s six-match white-ball cricket tour of Bangladesh next month has been postponed to 2026, both cricket boards said Saturday.
The series, including three one-day and three T20 matches, had been due to start on August 17 in Dhaka.
Political relations between India and Bangladesh have turned frosty since a mass uprising last year in Dhaka toppled then prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have “mutually agreed to defer” the series, the statement read.
It said the decision was made “taking into account the international cricketing commitments and scheduling convenience of both teams,” without giving further details.
It added that Bangladesh’s BCB “looks forward to welcoming India in September 2026,” with exact fixtures to be released later.
There is deep anger in Dhaka at the fate of Hasina, who escaped a student-led uprising by helicopter in August 2024 and flew to New Delhi.
Up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August last year, according to the United Nations, when Hasina’s government ordered a crackdown on protesters in a failed bid to cling to power.
Elections are expected in early 2026.
