JOHANNESBURG: Sudan overcame the handicap of being unable to play at home due to a civil war by defeating Niger 1-0 when 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying kicked off on Wednesday.
They were the only victors with the other three matches, between Comoros and Gambia, Libya and Rwanda and Tanzania and Ethiopia, all drawn.
Fighting between the national army and a paramilitary force in Sudan erupted in April 2023, forcing the national team to train and play abroad since.
Sudan hosted Niger in Juba, capital of neighboring South Sudan, and a 51st-minute goal from Thailand-based Abo Eisa secured maximum Group F points.
Comoros were another country who could not play at home because there is no international-standard stadium in the country.
They hosted Gambia in the Moroccan Atlantic city of El Jadida and broke the Group A deadlock on 37 minutes through Youssouf M’Changama.
Saudi Pro League midfielder Musa Barrow levelled in first-half added time for the Gambians, and there were no further goals.
The Group D opener between Libya and Rwanda in Tripoli also finished 1-1 with Subhi al Dhawi netting after 17 minutes and Innocent Nshuli equalising two minutes into the second half.
Ethiopia did not manage one shot on target as they drew 0-0 with Tanzania in Group H in Dar es Salaam.
There are seven qualifiers scheduled for Thursday with four former African champions — Algeria, Congo Brazzaville, Ghana and Tunisia — among the nations in action.
Homeless Sudan begin AFCON campaign with victory
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Homeless Sudan begin AFCON campaign with victory
- They were the only victors with the other three matches, between Comoros and Gambia, Libya and Rwanda and Tanzania and Ethiopia, all drawn
- Sudan hosted Niger in Juba, capital of neighboring South Sudan, and a 51st-minute goal from Thailand-based Abo Eisa secured maximum Group F points
Diaz earns Real Madrid lead on Atletico in Champions League derby clash
- Atletico began to create danger of their own and Valverde hacked away Giuliano Simeone’s whipped ball from under his own crossbar under pressure from Samuel Lino
MADRID: Real Madrid claimed a small edge on city rivals Atletico Madrid with a tight 2-1 Champions League last 16 first-leg win on Tuesday.
Julian Alvarez levelled for Atletico after Rodrygo Goes sent the hosts ahead, but Brahim Diaz stroked home the winner for the record 15-time winners to delight the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.
Diego Simeone’s Atletico, who lost in the 2014 and 2016 finals against their bitter rivals, kept stars Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe quiet but still came up short.
The Rojiblancos played it safe in the final stages, seeming to accept their one-goal disadvantage for the second leg derby clash at home next week.
Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti opted for Morocco international Diaz in midfield to replace the suspended Jude Bellingham and selected Fede Valverde at right-back after he was passed fit to play.
The Italian had demanded his side show a better attitude and more commitment than during their La Liga defeat by Real Betis on Saturday and his charges delivered.
Rodrygo pounced after just four minutes, slipping inside Javi Galan to collect Valverde’s teasing pass before firing home with his left foot across Jan Oblak and inside the far post.
It was the Brazilian winger’s fifth strike of the tournament, habitually shining on the European stage for Madrid, where he boasts 25 goals in 61 appearances.
Rodrygo wanted a penalty when Galan appeared to hold him back in the area but his appeals were waved away.
His compatriot Vinicius came close to netting Madrid’s second as he surged into the box but Jose Gimenez blocked his shot well.
Atletico began to create danger of their own and Valverde hacked away Giuliano Simeone’s whipped ball from under his own crossbar under pressure from Samuel Lino.
Alvarez levelled with a brilliant individual goal, dancing away from Eduardo Camavinga on the left of the box and curling his shot past Thibaut Courtois into the top corner.
The former Manchester City striker has been in sublime form in the past few weeks, notching 10 goals in 14 matches and proving why Atletico made him their second most expensive signing of all-time last summer.
Antoine Griezmann and Rodrigo De Paul helped Atletico keep control for long periods, with Madrid finding it hard to take the ball back from their rivals.
That made it all the more surprising when Diaz restored Los Blancos’ lead in the 55th minute.
The midfielder left Gimenez on the floor with some quick footwork and carved out the space for a tidy low finish, before leaping into the crowd to celebrate.
Griezmann fired wide and Gimenez over as Atletico looked for a response and Ancelotti brought on 39-year-old midfielder Luka Modric in search of more control.
The Croatian delivered just that and neither side threatened in the final half hour of the match until stoppage time, when Madrid might have secured a third.
Mbappe’s cut-back from the right was behind Vinicius who was waiting for a tap-in, and Oblak saved from Modric in the aftermath.
Atletico host Real Madrid next week at the Metropolitano stadium, with the winner facing Arsenal or PSV Eindhoven in the quarter-finals.
Al-Ahli take big step toward AFC Champions League quarter finals but Al-Hilal stumble
- Riyadh side, who have been in poor form of late, struggle to get going and fall to a 1-0 defeat by Pahktakor of Uzbekistan
- Better news for Saudi fans in Qatar, as Al-Ahli record an impressive 3-1 victory over Al-Rayyan
Al-Hilal lost 1-0 in Uzbekistan to Pahktakor on Tuesday in the first leg of their AFC Champions League Elite round-of-16 clash. Meanwhile, Saudi Pro League rivals Al-Ahli showed them how it should be done with an impressive victory over Qatari side Al-Rayyan.
A first-half goal was enough to give Pahktakor the advantage going into next week’s return leg, and the Riyadh club will have to improve if they hope to progress to the quarter-finals.
The four-time winners, beset by injuries, traveled to a freezing Tashkent in poor form, by their own high standards, with just one win in their past five league games. As a result, the Blues have slipped six points behind Pro League leaders Al-Ittihad, making success in Asia even more important.
Yet they never really got going in the first half and, despite finishing the group stage 14 points clear of their opponents, who won just one game out of eight, they were second-best from the start.
Coach Jorge Jesus will be particularly displeased about the goal, conceded just before the half-hour mark, which made this game the eighth out of the past 10 in which his players have failed to keep a clean sheet.
Brayan Riascos sent over a bouncing cross from the right and while it was a dangerous cross, there were three men in blue in place to deal with it. Instead, Brazilian forward Flamarion was able to get in front of the defenders and steer the ball home from just outside the six-yard box. The surprise was not that the Uzbeks had taken the lead but that it had taken so long for it to happen.
The second half began better for the visitors and they started to create chances. Just after the hour mark, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic headed over from close range when Moteb Al-Harbi found him with a cross. Abdullah Al-Hamdan came close to leveling for Al-Hilal but, overall, Pakhtakor deserved the victory and their advantage at the midway point of the tie.
There was better news for Saudi fans in Qatar, as Al-Ahli recorded a 3-1 victory over Al-Rayyan. Galeno grabbed the first for the visitors on the half-hour and Riyad Mahrez added a second just four minutes later. Both goals were created by Roberto Firmino.
The Jeddah side appeared to be taking a huge step towards the last eight but there were still some nerves on display when Roger Guedes fired the ball into the top corner of the net from the edge of the area to cut the deficit in half.
Firmino came close twice before Gabri Veiga appeared to have restored the two-goal advantage, with eight minutes remaining, only for the video assistant referee to intervene and rule the goal out for offside.
Deep into added time, however, Firas Al-Buraikan scored from close range to seal the win and give Al-Ahli a great chance to progress in the competition next week.
Rashford returns to Champions League in Aston Villa’s 3-1 win at Club Brugge
- Rashford did not score his first goal with his new team but put on a strong first-half display
- Rashford was replaced by Marco Asensio in the 64th minute
BRUGGE: Marcus Rashford resumed his Champions League career Tuesday, starting in Aston Villa’s 3-1 win at Club Brugge in the first leg of their last-16 tie.
Rashford did not score his first goal with his new team but put on a strong first-half display, making himself available and showing his pace and great technique on the wing.
After Leon Bailey put Villa ahead, Rashford had an excellent chance to double Villa’s lead on the break in the 10th minute from a tight angle, but his effort was blocked by goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.
Rashford was replaced by Marco Asensio in the 64th minute.
It was Rashford’s first Champions League match since November 2023, when he was sent off for Manchester United against FC Copenhagen.
Rashford joined Villa in February on loan from United, where he had fallen out with manager Ruben Amorim. He had not played for United since Dec. 12 amid Amorim’s concerns about Rashford’s commitment to training.
The 27-year-old forward’s loan runs to the end of the season.
Rashford has been in great from since his departure from Old Trafford. Although he has yet to score for his new team, he has been influential and set up three goals for Asensio.
According to UEFA statistics, Rashford played 33 Champions League games for United, scoring 12 goals.
Villa were a league-phase surprise, finishing eighth to set up the round-of-16 matchup against a Club Brugge squad that defeated Villa 1-0 in November and eliminated Atalanta in the playoffs.
PSG coach Enrique warns his players about Liverpool’s ‘fighter jets’ in attack
- Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah is enjoying one of the best seasons of his career with 30 goals in 39 games, and is well supported by Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo in attack
PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique is worried about the speed of Liverpool’s “fighter jets” in attack and warned his team not to give the ball away in their Champions League clash.
PSG host six-time champion Liverpool in the first leg of the round of 16 at Parc des Princes on Wednesday.
“Liverpool has one of the best counter attacks in Europe so we will try to keep the ball and be careful not to suffer too much from transitions,” Enrique said Tuesday at a pre-match news conference. “They have three fighter jets in attack and it’s not easy to stop these fighter jets.”
Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah is enjoying one of the best seasons of his career with 30 goals in 39 games, and is well supported by Luis Díaz and Cody Gakpo in attack.
“We are facing the team that has played the best football in the group stage. They were the most consistent side,” Enrique said. “Arne Slot has done a great job. He has created a near-perfect team, which knows how to defend, knows how to press, which can attack either by holding the ball or accelerating.”
In a rare admission, Enrique conceded that Liverpool may have the slight edge.
“Liverpool is also able to create danger without the ball, maybe they don’t need it as much we do,” he said. “To impose ourselves we generally need to keep the ball.”
However, PSG are on a 22-game unbeaten run since a 1-0 loss at Bayern Munich in late November. PSG have won their past 10 matches with an eye-watering 40 goals scored in a successfully re-shaped attack since Kylian Mbappe’s departure to Real Madrid.
“The advantage of our forward is that they can play in every position,” said Enrique, whose clever positional switch has allowed Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Bradley Barcola to play alongside Ousmane Dembele in attack.
PSG have much better teamwork in the post-Mbappe era, with Dembele scoring a career-best 26 goals in 33 games. The speedy 19-year-old forward Desire Doue and sharpshooter Gonçalo Ramos provide a threat from the bench. Enrique hopes Liverpool’s players will be rattled in Paris.
“It’s difficult for our opponents to play at Parc des Princes with the pressure,” he said. “The atmosphere is extraordinary and I hope we can profit from it.”
However, Liverpool’s Anfield stadium is one of the toughest places for a return leg, as Lionel Messi’s Barcelona found out in the 2019 semifinals, losing 4-0 after winning 3-0 at home.
Both sides are dominating their respective leagues.
Unbeaten PSG are coasting toward a record-extending 13th French title.
Liverpool are closing in on a record-equaling 20th Premier League title, while a seventh Champions League crown would move them level with AC Milan in second place outright.
PSG lost the only Champions League final in their history 1-0 to Bayern in 2020 in the Coronavirus-shortened campaign.
Swiss prosecutors seek suspended sentences for Blatter and Platini
- An Extraordinary Appeal Court sitting in Muttenz near Basel, will hand down its decision on March 25 in a long-running legal saga
- Prosecutor Thomas Hildbrand opted not to call for prison sentences for the 88-year-old Swiss and 69-year-old Frenchman
MUTTENZ, Switzerland: The Swiss public prosecutor on Tuesday requested suspended sentences of 20 months for both Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini in an appeal against their 2022 acquittal in a corruption case.
An Extraordinary Appeal Court sitting in Muttenz near Basel, will hand down its decision on March 25 in a long-running legal saga which shattered the careers of Blatter, the former president of world football’s governing body FIFA, and Platini, ex-head of European body UEFA.
Prosecutor Thomas Hildbrand opted not to call for prison sentences for the 88-year-old Swiss and 69-year-old Frenchman.
The case began in 2015 when Blatter quit as head of FIFA in a corruption crisis. It stems from a delayed payment of two million Swiss francs (1.8 million euros) FIFA paid Platini in 2011 for consultancy services.
The pair were acquitted by the Swiss Federal Court in June 2022 of charges that included “disloyal management,” “breach of trust” and “forgery of securities.”
The court concluded that fraud was “not established with a likelihood bordering on certainty,” and therefore applied the general principle of criminal law according to which “the doubt must benefit the accused.”
The Swiss Attorney General’s office appealed.
In his three-and-a-half-hour argument on Tuesday, Hildbrand set out to dispel the defendants’ assertion that they had an “oral contract” to pay Platini in 2011 for work as a consultant between 1998 and 2002.
In 2011, Platini opted not to run against Blatter, who was then reelected as FIFA president.
Blatter and Platini had signed a written agreement in August 1999, before the Frenchman became UEFA president, providing for an annual payment by FIFA of 300,000 Swiss francs for consultancy work.
At the beginning of 2011, Platini presented an invoice for 2 million Swiss francs. Blatter approved it and presented it to FIFA as a late salary balance.
The defendants say they had agreed a yearly sum of one million Swiss francs but that this was too much for FIFA finances at the time.
Hildbrand said the argument was implausible. Even if FIFA had transferred one million Swiss francs to Platini in 1999, it would still have had “more than 21 million francs in cash,” and its reserves had reached 328 million in 2002.
To agree such a sum without a written record, without witnesses and without ever making provision for it in the accounts was, he said, “contrary to commercial practice” as well as to FIFA’s norms.
The appeal trial, which began on Monday, is due to continue until Thursday at the latest, with closing arguments from the defense.
Although FIFA, the civil party, has joined the public prosecutor’s appeal, it is not represented in Muttenz.
