LONDON: Premier League teams Brentford and Southampton both squeezed past second-tier opponents to reach the quarterfinals of the English League Cup on Tuesday.
Brentford needed a penalty shootout to get past Sheffield Wednesday after a 1-1 draw.
Goalkeeper Mark Flekken saved from Liam Palmer off the last spot kick of a high-quality shootout that Brentford won 5-4.
James Bree scored an 88th-minute winner as Southampton beat Stoke 3-2.
A cup run is proving some respite for Southampton, which is in last place in the Premier League.
The rest of the last-16 matches are played on Wednesday, with all of the competition favorites in action.
Defending champion Liverpool visits Brighton, Premier League leader Manchester City is away to Tottenham and there are three other all-Premier League matchups: Newcastle vs. Chelsea, Manchester United vs. Leicester and Aston Villa vs. Crystal Palace. Arsenal visits second-tier Preston.
Brentford and Southampton advance to English League Cup quarterfinals
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Brentford and Southampton advance to English League Cup quarterfinals
- James Bree scored an 88th-minute winner as Southampton beat Stoke 3-2
Amorim says future ‘hasn’t been decided’ as Man United show interest in Sporting Lisbon coach
- Sporting released a statement to the Lisbon Stock Exchange, saying it has told United that Amorim has a release clause worth €10 million ($10.8 million) in his contract
- The 39-year-old Amorim has coached Sporting since 2020, leading the team to Portuguese league titles in 2021 and last season
Sporting Lisbon coach Ruben Amorim said Tuesday his future “hasn’t been decided yet” amid interest from Manchester United.
“Nobody knows if this was my farewell match, or if there will be a farewell match,” Amorim said in quotes reported by Portugal’s sports daily A Bola after Sporting’s 3-1 win over Nacional in the Portuguese League Cup quarterfinals.
Hours earlier, Sporting released a statement to the Lisbon Stock Exchange, saying it has told United that Amorim has a release clause worth €10 million ($10.8 million) in his contract.
The Portuguese champions said United “has shown interest” in paying that amount for Amorim.
United are looking to replace Erik ten Hag, who was fired on Monday with the team languishing in 14th place in the Premier League.
Ten Hag was the 20-time English champions’ fifth permanent manager since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013. United have not won the league since Ferguson’s departure.
The 39-year-old Amorim has coached Sporting since 2020, leading the team to Portuguese league titles in 2021 and last season.
Sporting lead the league this season, too, having won all nine of its games, bolstering Amorim’s reputation as one of Europe’s most talented coaches.
He reportedly held talks with West Ham last season and was linked with replacing Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool before Arne Slot was hired.
Amorim is a former Portugal midfielder who spent the majority of his club career at Benfica.
His contract at Sporting expires in 2026.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was asked earlier Tuesday if he thought Amorim has what it takes to succeed in the Premier League.
“All I can talk about is the experience of playing twice against Ruben’s Sporting Lisbon team (in the Champions League’s round of 16 in 2022), and the pressure was really, really good,” Guardiola said.
“I spoke with (current City player) Matheus Nunes, and he was his player, and he speaks highly about him. And look this season, he is unbeaten and winning all the games in the Portuguese league and (in) the Champions League, (they have) the same points as us. So a high manager. I have the feeling that Man United, what I hear, that they are thinking about him, it’s because he’s a good manager.”
Ten Hag’s assistant at United, Ruud van Nistelrooy, will take interim control of the team for Wednesday’s English League Cup match against Leicester at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo misses late penalty as Al-Nassr eliminated from Saudi cup
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia: Cristiano Ronaldo missed a stoppage-time penalty and Al-Nassr was eliminated from the King’s Cup in a 1-0 loss to Al-Taawoun on Tuesday.
The five-time Ballon D’Or winner has yet to win a major trophy since signing for the club almost two years ago.
Playing at the round-of-16 stage of Saudi Arabia’s premier knockout competition, Al-Taawoun took the lead on Waleed Al-Ahmad’s header with 20 minutes remaining. Al-Ahmad was then whistled for a foul in the area in the 95th minute.
Ronaldo had converted all 18 of his previous penalties for Al-Nassr but this time shot over the bar to the shock of the home crowd of 14,519.
The defeat is the first for Stefano Pioli since the Italian succeeded Luis Castro as head coach in September.
Ronaldo and Al-Nassr still have two chances at silverware this season but are already six points behind leader Al-Hilal after eight games of the Saudi Pro League and have seven points from three games in the group stage of the Asian Champions League.
“Technically we performed well but we couldn’t win the game,” Pioli said. “We feel disappointed to be out of the cup. But we still have two trophies to go for and we will give our best in them.”
Napoli extend lead at top of Serie A with win at AC Milan
MILAN: Napoli grew their lead at the top of the Serie A table to seven points with a 2-0 win at AC Milan on Tuesday.
Antonio Conte’s resurgent side wrapped the match up inside the first half, courtesy of an early Romelu Lukaku goal and a sensational strike by Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
Napoli sit on 25 points, with champions Inter Milan on 18 but with the chance to reduce the gap when they visit Empoli on Wednesday.
A third defeat of the campaign leaves AC Milan in eighth place, 11 points behind the leaders.
Belgian striker Lukaku scored his fourth goal of the season since joining the 2023 Italian champions in the summer when he broke the deadlock on five minutes.
He raced onto a pass from Frank Anguissa, held off a defender and slotted coolly past Mike Maignan in the AC Milan goal.
Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret was forced twice into action before the half-hour to maintain his side’s lead.
As the clock ticked down to half-time, Georgian winger Kvaratskhelia doubled the visitors’ lead.
Picking the ball up on the left wing, he drove suddenly inside on his right foot past Youssouf Fofana and rifled a shot from distance into the far post beyond the dive of Maignan.
Alvaro Morata thought he had given Milan a lifeline two minutes after the break with a powerful header.
However, upon VAR review he was shown to have been offside in the build-up to the goal and it was disallowed.
The hosts continued to search for a way back into the encounter and only a fine reflex save by Meret to deny Rafael Leao in the 83rd minute kept Napoli’s two-goal cushion intact.
Earlier, goals in either half by Riccardo Orsolini and Jens Odgaard sent Bologna up to 10th in the table with a 2-0 win at Cagliari.
Lecce climbed off the foot of the table by beating nine-men Verona 1-0 thanks to a Patrick Dorgu goal on 51 minutes.
The away side lost Jackson Tchatchoua to a red card five minutes before half-time, then Reda Belahyane was given his marching orders inside the final 10 minutes for a second bookable offense
New Pakistan white-ball skipper hopes Australia tour settles side
- Mohammad Rizwan was appointed captain of limited over formats on Sunday, replacing Babar Azam
- Three one-day international matches will kick off in Melbourne on November 4, followed by three T20Is
KARACHI: Pakistan’s new white-ball skipper Mohammad Rizwan said Tuesday he hopes a new-look squad will settle into form on their Australia tour, after a saga of upheaval for the side.
Rizwan was appointed captain of limited over formats on Sunday, replacing Babar Azam who had two turns in the post but wasn’t able to allay a run of disastrous tournament performances.
Pakistan suffered further tumult on Monday when white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten resigned over differences on selection just days before the Australia tour. Test coach Jason Gillespie will stand in as a replacement.
Three one-day international matches will kick off in Melbourne on November 4, followed by the same number of T20Is in a test of the team ahead of next year’s Champion Trophy.
Openers Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq were dropped on fitness and disciplinary issues.
“We will miss them, but ahead of a major event like the Champions Trophy we want to test various combinations and hope they will settle before the event,” Rizwan told reporters.
Pakistan recalled Azam and pace spearheads Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah for the series after dropping them for the last two Tests of the England series they won 2-1 last week.
The ODI squad also includes Aamer Jamal, Arafat Minhas, Faisal Akram, Haseebullah, Muhammad Irfan Khan and Saim Ayub who have yet to play the format.
Jahandad Khan and Salman Ali Agha are previously untested players included in the T20I squad.
“Whoever is the coach we need to combine well and bring good results on a tough tour,” said Rizwan.
Pakistan have won only two of their last 16 ODIs in Australia and lost three of the four T20Is.
Saudi Arabia unveils world-class venue as WTA Finals head to Riyadh
- Garbine Muguruza, serving as tournament director for the first time, shared her enthusiasm with Arab News about the distinctiveness of the facilities
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s King Saud University Indoor Arena, newly prepared to host the upcoming WTA Finals from Nov. 2-9, is set to welcome the world’s top women tennis players in a historic first for the Kingdom.
At its heart is a meticulously crafted center court, completed in just five days, with a wooden base layered in acrylic to provide an optimal playing surface. Unique to this year’s setup are three full-size practice courts — an uncommon feature in WTA Finals venues — allowing players the flexibility to train whenever they need.
Garbine Muguruza, serving as tournament director for the first time, shared her enthusiasm with Arab News about the distinctiveness of the facilities.
“With these three practice courts, players can train whenever they want, a flexibility that adds a new dimension to their preparation,” she said, noting the positive response from athletes who have already arrived.
“The players are excited to experience not only the courts but also the warmth and hospitality of the Kingdom, which has set a welcoming tone for the event.”
Supporting the main facilities, the arena includes individual locker rooms, a dedicated players’ lounge, and a dining hall, all designed to provide a seamless experience for athletes and teams.
Saudi Tennis Federation President Areej Mutabagani expressed her excitement for what this event means for Saudi youth, especially young women.
“To see top players like Aryna Sabalenka competing here can inspire young people to consider tennis as both a sport and a pathway to self-confidence and growth,” she explained, noting that the federation’s larger vision is to see sports become a powerful tool for development and empowerment across Saudi Arabia.
The WTA Finals will feature the top eight players in both singles and doubles, bringing a premier level of competition to Riyadh. Beyond the matches themselves, the event includes community outreach programs to engage Saudi youth, familiarize them with tennis, and create opportunities to meet their role models.
Muguruza highlighted the potential of these initiatives to drive a new generation of athletes: “Seeing these players up close can be life-changing, especially for young girls who might not have envisioned themselves in sports before.”
The WTA Finals mark the beginning of a three-year partnership between the Saudi Tennis Federation and the WTA, supporting the federation’s aim to attract 1 million Saudis to engage in tennis by 2030.
Local talents, including young players like Dania Alzuhair and Tala Ashoor, were among the first to try out the new courts, symbolizing the next generation of Saudi tennis.
“This isn’t just a tournament; it’s a pivotal step in building a sports culture that empowers and uplifts our youth,” Mutabagani noted, emphasizing how the WTA Finals are a key part of Vision 2030’s broader focus on youth development and sports inclusion.
As Saudi Arabia prepares to welcome fans and top athletes, the tournament is set to be not only a sporting event but a milestone that promises to shape the future of tennis in the Kingdom and inspire young Saudis to pursue their passions with confidence and ambition.
