Buoyant Inter gunning for leaders Napoli and Serie A summit

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi before their Champions League match at San Siro, Milan, Italy on Nov. 6, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 07 November 2024
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Buoyant Inter gunning for leaders Napoli and Serie A summit

  • Wednesday’s win came despite Inzaghi dropping five first-choice players with Napoli
  • The defense of the Serie A title his clear priority in the early months of the season

MILAN: Inter Milan have top spot in Serie A in their sights as they host league leaders Napoli this weekend boosted by a gritty win over Arsenal in the Champions League.
Reigning champions Inter are a point behind Napoli and in buoyant mood ahead of Sunday’s clash at the San Siro after showing huge spirit to beat Arsenal 1-0 and continue their unbeaten start in Europe.
Simone Inzaghi’s team are yet to concede a goal in the Champions League and after four matches are two points behind leaders Liverpool in the new single league phase.
Wednesday’s win came despite Inzaghi dropping five first-choice players with Napoli and the defense of the Serie A title his clear priority in the early months of the season.
And Inter had to hold off wave after wave of Arsenal attacks in the second half after Hakan Calhanoglu’s penalty in stoppage time of the opening period, claiming the win with the sort dogged defending which has been lacking in Serie A where they have conceded 13 times in 11 matches.
“It was a win earned through sacrifice, the only thing that mattered tonight was the result. I needed minutes, now I’m ready for Napoli,” said Calhanoglu who was excellent in his first start since recovering from a thigh injury and will guide Inter’s midfield on Sunday.
Inter will be at full strength after Nicolo Barella, Federico Dimarco, Marcus Thuram, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Francesco Acerbi all started the Arsenal win on the bench.
That is a daunting prospect for Napoli who have however had a week to prepare for Sunday’s clash and won at the San Siro against AC Milan as recently as last week.
Napoli have impressed by leading the league following last season’s disastrous defense of their first Scudetto since the days of Diego Maradona.
But Napoli were thumped 3-0 at home by dark horses Atalanta last weekend and questions remain over whether Antonio Conte’s side are ready to reclaim the title.
Conte, a practicing Catholic, said ahead of his team’s humbling at the hands of third-placed Atalanta that “football miracles can happen but only one person can make them happen.”
“All we can do is work hard and try to create something beautiful which in football terms translates into more points,” said Conte.
Mario Balotelli is set for more minutes with his new club Genoa who face Como at the unusual time of Thursday night, a rearrangement forced by an important rally race being held in the port city over the weekend.
Former Italy striker Balotelli made his Genoa debut off the bench late in last weekend’s 1-0 win at Parma which lifted Alberto Gilardino’s team out of the relegation zone, but his only contribution was getting booked.
In-form Fiorentina and Lazio, who are level on 22 points with Atalanta, face Verona and Monza respectively and have a chance to move level with Napoli before Sunday’s big match at the San Siro.
Juventus, who sit a point behind that trio in sixth, host local rivals Torino after drawing 1-1 at Lille on Tuesday.

Fresh from another stellar performance in Wednesday’s 2-0 win at Stuttgart, Lookman is in the form of his life as Atalanta host Udinese in Sunday’s lunchtime fixture with talk of a title challenge looking increasingly realistic.
Nigeria forward Lookman, the hat-trick hero of last season’s Europa League triumph, has scored eight goals and set up five more in 12 appearances this term.
His stunning performances, which have helped push Atalanta to within three points of Napoli, come after being dropped at the start of the season after pushing for a move to Paris Saint-Germain.
But the way he and attack partners Mateo Retegui and Charles De Ketelaere have been playing suggests that Lookman could just as likely scale new heights staying exactly where he is.

Thursday
Genoa v Como (1945)
Friday
Lecce v Empoli (1945)
Saturday
Venezia v Parma (1400), Cagliari v AC Milan (1700), Juventus v Torino (1945)
Sunday
Atalanta v Udinese (1130), Roma v Bologna, Fiorentina v Verona (1400), Monza v Lazio (1700), Inter Milan v Napoli (1945)


Isak fires Newcastle into Premier League top four, Moyes misery

Updated 16 January 2025
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Isak fires Newcastle into Premier League top four, Moyes misery

  • The striker is just the fourth different player to score in eight successive Premier League appearances

LONDON: Alexander Isak fired Newcastle into the Premier League’s top four on Wednesday, scoring twice in a 3-0 cruise against Wolves as David Moyes endured a miserable return to the Everton dugout.
Red-hot Isak found the net for the eighth league match in a row as the Magpies leapfrogged faltering Chelsea into fourth spot in the table.
The Swedish international put the home side ahead in the 34th minute when his shot took a huge deflection off Wolves defender Rayan Ait-Nouri, leaving Jose Sa wrong-footed.
The striker is just the fourth different player to score in eight successive Premier League appearances, after Jamie Vardy (twice for Leicester), Ruud van Nistelrooy (twice for Manchester United), and Daniel Sturridge (for Liverpool).
Isak doubled Newcastle’s lead shortly before the hour mark, controlling Bruno Guimaraes’ pass before firing home for his 15th league goal of the season and Anthony Gordon added a third.
Eddie Howe’s men, who have now won six straight league games, have recovered strongly from a lengthy poor spell to make a powerful case for a Champions League spot next season.
Taking advantage of the faltering form of Manchester City and Chelsea, they are just three points behind third-placed Nottingham Forest.
Moyes, in the first game of his second spell in charge of Everton, watched his toothless side lose 1-0 to Aston Villa at Goodison Park.
Ollie Watkins broke the deadlock in the 51st minute, slotting past England teammate Jordan Pickford after he was sent clear by Morgan Rogers.
Everton huffed and puffed but showed a lack of creativity — unsurprising for a team who have scored just 15 league goals in their 20 matches this season.
The result lifts Unai Emery’s Villa to seventh in the table but Everton remain in deep trouble, just one point above the relegation zone in 16th spot.
The Liverpool club’s new owners, the American-based Friedkin Group, sacked Sean Dyche last week and brought back 61-year-old Moyes, who enjoyed success during an 11-year stint at Goodison Park from 2002 to 2013.
But the Toffees, ever-present in the top flight since 1954, have battled relegation for the past three seasons and are once again in deep trouble.
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Leicester suffered their sixth straight league defeat, losing 2-0 to Crystal Palace to leave the Foxes second from bottom of the table.
Jean-Philippe Mateta put the visitors ahead early in the second half and Marc Guehi made the points safe with a late second.
Arsenal, winless in three matches in all competitions, are hosting injury-hit Tottenham in the late kick-off on Wednesday.


Police probe abuse of Havertz’s wife after Arsenal star’s woes

Updated 15 January 2025
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Police probe abuse of Havertz’s wife after Arsenal star’s woes

  • Havertz missed a penalty in Arsenal’s shootout defeat against Manchester United in the FA Cup
  • The Germany international’s wife, Sophia, reposted two abusive messages she had received on Instagramhavertz

LONDON: Police have launched an investigation into social media abuse aimed at Arsenal forward Kai Havertz’s wife after his latest poor performance.
Havertz missed a penalty in Arsenal’s shootout defeat against Manchester United in the FA Cup third round on Sunday.
Following Arsenal’s second successive loss, the Germany international’s wife, Sophia, reposted two abusive messages she had received on Instagram.
A police spokesman told Britain’s Press Association: “Officers have received a report of malicious communications toward a Hertfordshire resident on Sunday 12 January. Enquiries are under way.”
Speaking on Tuesday, on the eve of Arsenal’s Premier League match against Tottenham, Gunners manager Mikel Arteta flagged the “terrible consequences” of online abuse.
“It’s something that we really have to eradicate from the game, because it’s so cynical as well,” he said.
Havertz has scored 12 goals in 27 matches for Arsenal this season.
But his woeful finishing in the United game and the preceeding 2-0 home defeat to Newcastle in the League Cup semifinal first leg has reopened criticism of the German.
Havertz, who scored the Champions League final winner for Chelsea in 2021, has endured an erratic spell with Arsenal since moving across London in 2023.
But Arteta said there is no excuse for the abuse, saying: “We can accept it and say ‘that’s our job’, but there are certain limits and the line has to be drawn. It cannot happen. That’s it.”


Lyon dumped out of French cup by fifth-tier Bourgoin-Jallieu

Updated 15 January 2025
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Lyon dumped out of French cup by fifth-tier Bourgoin-Jallieu

  • The hometown hero was Mehdi Moujetzky

BOURGOIN-JALLIEU, France: Seven-time French champions Lyon were sent crashing out of the French Cup when they were beaten 4-2 on penalties by fifth-tier Bourgoin-Jallieu in their last-32 tie on Wednesday.
The hometown hero was Mehdi Moujetzky, who scored both goals for Bourgoin-Jallieu in normal time as the game ended 2-2.
He put his side ahead after 20 minutes and scored his second in the 69th to level the scores after Nemanja Matic and Georges Mikautadze appeared to have put Lyon, who are sixth in Ligue 1, en route for the last 16.
Lyon’s Alexandre Lacazette and Corentin Tolisso both missed penalties in the shoot-out to send Bourgoin-Jallieu through.
There was another upset when Ligue 2 side Troyes beat Ligue 1’s Rennes 1-0.


South Africa’s injured Nortje ruled out of Pakistan-hosted Champions Trophy

Updated 15 January 2025
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South Africa’s injured Nortje ruled out of Pakistan-hosted Champions Trophy

  • Nortje has played in 19 Tests, 22 one-day internationals and 42 T20 internationals for South Africa
  • Replacement for Nortje, named in South Africa’s 15-man squad on Tuesday, will be announced soon

JOHANNESBURG: Fast bowler Anrich Nortje was on Tuesday ruled out of the Champions Trophy because of a back injury.
The latest injury setback for the 31-year-old was announced by Cricket South Africa a day after he was named in his country’s 15-man squad for the tournament in Pakistan next month.
Nortje, at his peak the fastest bowler in international cricket, underwent a scan on Monday, according to a statement by CSA, “which revealed the extent of the injury.”
The statement did not specify the exact nature of the injury.
Nortje, who has played in 19 Tests, 22 one-day internationals and 42 T20 internationals, has not played any international cricket since the final of the T20 World Cup in Barbados last June.
He had been in line to make a comeback against Pakistan last month but suffered a broken toe while batting in the nets.
Nortje was also ruled out of the ongoing SA20 franchise competition in which he was due to play for Pretoria Capitals.
CSA said a replacement would be named later.


Lebanese sensation Hady Habib’s historic journey comes to an end at Australian Open

Updated 15 January 2025
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Lebanese sensation Hady Habib’s historic journey comes to an end at Australian Open

  • The 26-year-old Houston-born player lost to Frenchman Ugo Humbert in three straight sets (3-6, 4-6, 4-6)
  • A large crowd from the Lebanese community in Australia were present to cheer on Habib

BEIRUT: The journey of Lebanon’s tennis sensation Hady Habib, who on Sunday became the first Lebanese to ever win a Grand Slam match, ended at the Australian Open after he lost to France’s Ugo Humbert on Wednesday.
In front of a large Lebanese audience in Melbourne that enthusiastically supported Habib, the 26-year-old Houston-born player ended what has been portrayed as a historic journey in the Australian Open tournament after losing three straight sets (3-6, 4-6, 4-6) in the second round.
On Sunday, Habib, who is 216th in the ATP singles ranking, made history after defeating in the first round 22-year-old Chinese player Bu Yunchaokete, ranked 65th in the world, 7-6 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (6) to reach the second round, becoming the first Lebanese to win a Grand Slam main draw singles match in the Open Era.


A large crowd from the Lebanese community in Australia were present to cheer on Habib as he challenged an elite player, Humbert, ranked 14th in the world. The clear and obvious difference in experience eventually leaned in favor of the Frenchman.
Habib became the first Lebanese to qualify for one of the four major tennis tournaments, after achieving three consecutive victories in the preliminary rounds by defeating American Patrick Kipson (6-4, 7-6), Taiwan’s Chun-Hsin Tseng (6-4, 7-6) and Frenchman Clement Chedekh (6-4, 3-6, 7-6).
Habib represented Lebanon in the Olympic Games, and lost at Roland Garros to Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz in the first round. He also lost the doubles match with Benjamin Hassan to the Australian duo Matthew Ebden and John Peers.
“It’s absolutely incredible,” he told Arab News earlier this week after his first-round triumph.
“I’m so grateful for their support. I think the Lebanese community, I sort of brought everyone together, and it was really special to win in front of them. Every time I’m playing, there’s a larger and larger crowd. So, yeah, it’s just been amazing,” the 26-year-old said.