PARIS: Ousmane Dembele scored a hat-trick for the second time in four days as Paris Saint-Germain hammered Brest 5-2 on Saturday in a dress rehearsal of the upcoming Champions League clash between the two sides.
Dembele followed up his three-goal haul in Wednesday’s 4-1 win at VfB Stuttgart which saw PSG secure a place in the knockout phase play-offs of Europe’s elite club competition.
The France winger opened the scoring in the first half, and netted two more after Romain Del Castillo had briefly brought Brest level.
Ludovic Ajorque pulled another one back for the home side to set up a grandstand finale, but substitute Goncalo Ramos wrapped up the win for PSG with a late double.
Luis Enrique’s side are still unbeaten domestically this season and now sit 13 points clear at the top of the Ligue 1 table.
Marseille, who are second, can narrow that gap a little when they host Lyon on Sunday, but PSG are cruising to their 11th French league title in 13 years.
Dembele, meanwhile, is loving playing in a central attacking role rather than his traditional position wide on the right.
He has now scored 14 goals in his last nine games in all competitions, and is Ligue 1’s leading marksman with 14 for the season.
“I am well positioned in the number nine role. I owe it to myself to score goals,” Dembele told broadcaster beIN Sports.
“It was important to win today to keep our good run going and now we will see what happens in the Champions League.”
PSG’s record against domestic opponents this season means Brest will surely be dreading having to face Luis Enrique’s side again over two legs in the Champions League.
The teams will meet in the first leg on February 11 in Guingamp, where Brest are having to host Champions League games this season as their own Stade Francis-Le Ble does not meet UEFA requirements.
They were in their usual home stadium for this game, but they could not stop PSG making it 14 games unbeaten in all competitions.
Bradley Barcola raced onto a through ball before squaring for Dembele to open the scoring just before the half-hour mark.
Brest, who lost 3-0 against Real Madrid in midweek, came out fighting after the break and drew level five minutes into the second half thanks to a lovely low strike by Del Castillo from the edge of the box.
However, the visitors were back ahead before the hour mark as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was denied in the box but the ball broke for Dembele to score.
He then completed his hat-trick soon after, having been picked out by a superb Lee Kang-in pass.
Ajorque’s terrific hit made it 3-2, but Ramos came on for Dembele and made it 4-2 on 89 minutes at the end of a counterattack led by Desire Doue, who had replaced Kvaratskhelia.
Ramos, the Portugal striker, then scored again deep in injury time, his eighth goal of the season coming as he tried to set up a teammate but saw the ball break back to him.
Brest are eighth, four points outside the European places for next season.
Monaco play Auxerre and Lille host Saint-Etienne in Saturday’s other matches.
In-form Dembele hits hat-trick again as PSG thump Brest
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In-form Dembele hits hat-trick again as PSG thump Brest
- Luis Enrique’s side are still unbeaten domestically this season and now sit 13 points clear at the top of the Ligue 1 table
Al-Hilal return to winning ways, Al-Nassr stumble
- With just 2 wins in last 6 league games, pressure was on Al-Hilal
- Al-Nassr draw 2-2 with Al-Shabab to be 10 points behind leaders Al-Ittihad
RIYADH: Al-Hilal defeated Al-Fayha 2-0 on Friday to cut Al-Ittihad’s lead at the top of the Saudi Pro League to just four points while, despite another Cristiano Ronaldo special, Al-Nassr were held to a 2-2 draw by Al-Shabab in the Riyadh derby.
With just two wins in the last six league games, the pressure was on Al-Hilal but a first-half goal from Mohamed Kanno eased the worries of the defending champions. The midfielder was left unmarked near the penalty spot from a Ruben Neves corner from the right and headed home powerfully.
It put a spring in the step of the visitors but it was not until the 90th minute that Al-Hilal were certain of the three points. Aleksandar Mitrovic has been injured since January but was never going to miss when Salem Al-Dawsari pulled the ball back and the Serbian striker stroked home. It was not a vintage performance but the win was more than welcome for under-fire coach Jorge Jesus.
Back in Riyadh, Al-Nassr drew 2-2 with Al-Shabab and are now 10 points behind the leaders Al-Ittihad.
It all happened toward the end of the first half. Abderrazak Hamdallah opened the scoring against his former club, putting Al-Shabab ahead from the penalty spot. Daniel Podence was brought down just inside the area and up stepped the Moroccan to smash the ball into the corner.
But Al-Nassr were ahead by the break. Two minutes into added time, the Yellows equalized. Al-Shabab cleared a left-sided Ronaldo free-kick that bounced out to Ayman Yahya who lashed it home from just inside the area.
Seven minutes into added time Ronaldo put Al-Nassr ahead. The 40-year-old picked up possession on the right side of the area and then smashed the ball home into the roof of the net for his 18th league goal of the season.
It was all looking good but, seven minutes into the second half, Al-Nassr were reduced to 10 men as Mohammed Al-Fatil was adjudged to have bundled over Podence as the Portuguese star ran for goal.
Midway through the second period Al-Shabab took advantage of their one-man advantage and were back on level terms when Mohammed Al-Shwirekh headed home from a corner.
Just 10 points separate the top five teams with 10 games remaining. It is all still to play for.
Saudi taekwondo champion Dunya Abu-Talib wins IOC Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Award for Asia
- Abu-Talib recognized for her inspiring contribution to empowering female athletes, IOC says
- Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee’s president, voices pride in the achievement
RIYADH: Taekwondo national team athlete Dunya Abu Talib has become the first Saudi sportsperson to win the International Olympic Committee’s Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Award for Asia.
Abu Talib, the first Saudi woman to qualify for the Olympic Games and win an Asian gold medal, was given the 2024 award in recognition of her inspiring contribution to empowering female athletes both locally and internationally, the IOC said in a statement on Friday.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee president, expressed his pride in the achievement, saying: “I congratulate Abu Talib on this well-deserved award, which reflects the significant progress in women’s sports in the Kingdom, thanks to the unlimited support of our wise leadership.”
The recognition shows that Saudi women are now playing a key role in global sports and serves as a motivation for the next generation of female athletes to achieve even greater success, he said.
Abu Talib ranked first globally in the International Taekwondo Federation’s general classification for the under-53 kg weight category for March 2025.
SOPC continues its commitment to supporting male and female athletes in the Kingdom by providing a comprehensive sports environment that enables them to achieve global success and raise the Saudi flag at the world’s leading sporting events.
‘No advantage’ in playing Champions Trophy matches in Dubai, says Indian batting coach
- The tournament’s tangled schedule, forcing teams to travel to Dubai to play India, has become controversial
- New Zealand head coach says his team has played a game in Dubai and will learn quickly from that experience
DUBAI: India playing all their Champions Trophy matches in Dubai was a pre-tournament decision and the talk of unfair advantage is baseless, the team’s batting coach said on Friday.
Rohit Sharma’s team face New Zealand in the title clash on Sunday at the Dubai International Stadium, where India have been unbeaten in four matches.
India refused to tour hosts Pakistan in the eight-nation tournament due to political tensions and were given Dubai as their venue in the United Arab Emirates.
“The draw that happened, it happened before,” batting coach Sitanshu Kotak told reporters. “After India winning four matches, if people feel that there is an advantage, then I don’t know what to say about it.”
The tournament’s tangled schedule, with teams flying in and out of the UAE from Pakistan while India have stayed put, has been hugely controversial.
South Africa batsman David Miller said “it was not an ideal situation” for his team to fly in to Dubai to wait on India’s semifinal opponent and then fly back to Lahore in less than 24 hours.
Even nominal hosts Pakistan had to jump on a jet and fly to Dubai to play India, rather than face them on home soil.
The pitches have been vastly different in the two countries.
Pakistan tracks produced big totals, in contrast to the slow and turning decks of the Dubai stadium.
“End of the day, I think in a game, you have to play good cricket every day when you turn up,” the 52-year-old Kotak said. “So the only thing they (critics) may say is that we play here. But that is how the draw is.”
“So nothing else can happen in that. It is not that after coming here, they changed something and we got an advantage,” he added.
India have been the team to beat after they topped Group A, which had New Zealand, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
They then beat Australia in the first semifinal.
New Zealand, led by Mitchell Santner, lost the last group game to India by 44 runs before they beat South Africa in the second semifinal in Lahore.
Kotak said the previous result between the two teams will have no bearing on their mindset going into the final.
“That depends how the New Zealand team thinks, but I think we should not think that,” said Kotak.
“We should just try and turn up and play a good game of cricket because there is no use thinking about the last match.”
New Zealand head coach Gary Stead said they are not too worried about India’s advantage.
“I mean, look, the decision around that’s out of our hands,” said Stead.
“So, it’s not something we worry about too much. India have got to play all their games here in Dubai. But as you said, we have had a game here and we’ll learn very quickly from that experience there as well.”
“And if we’re good enough to beat India on Sunday, then I’m sure we’ll be very, very happy,” he added.
Brighton boss Hurzeler targets ‘new peaks’ in Premier League
- Brighton’s extra-time FA Cup victory at Newcastle last weekend was a fifth straight win in all competitions
- Hurzeler has enjoyed an impressive first campaign at the club, who host Fulham on Saturday
LONDON: Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler has urged his side to “climb new peaks” as they seek to move into the Premier League’s top six.
The soaring Seagulls have been on an impressive run since being hammered 7-0 at Nottingham Forest on Feb. 1.
Brighton’s extra-time FA Cup victory at Newcastle last weekend was a fifth straight win in all competitions for the south coast side.
Hurzeler — at 32 the youngest permanent manager in Premier League history — has enjoyed an impressive first campaign at the club, who host Fulham on Saturday.
Marco Silva’s Fulham are ninth in the table, one place below Brighton as the race for European places hots up.
Hurzeler, two years younger than Brighton forward Danny Welbeck, has challenged his team to aim high.
The club’s best-ever Premier League finish was sixth, in the 2022/23 season, earning qualification for the Europa League.
“It is very important we focus on our journey and that we really believe in it,” Hurzeler said on Friday.
“Yesterday, I received a picture from a mountain. In a mountain you always have new peaks, new peaks you have to climb. That is the goal for us, we have to climb new peaks.”
He added: “Fulham will be a big, big challenge. They have played an unbelievable season, they play very compact as a team and have individual quality.”
Hurzeler said Japan winger Kaoru Mitoma would be available, having been forced off with cramp at Newcastle.
India football great Chhetri comes out of retirement aged 40
- The former captain, the fourth-highest men’s international goalscorer of all time, played his last match for India in June 2024 in a World Cup qualifier
- Chhetri said last year that “instinct” told him the match against Kuwait should be his last and he bowed out in front of nearly 59,000 fans in Kolkata
MUMBAI: Indian football legend Sunil Chhetri will return to the national team aged 40 in an unexpected reversal of his decision to hang up his boots last year.
The former captain, the fourth-highest men’s international goalscorer of all time, played his last match for India in June 2024 in a World Cup qualifier.
Chhetri said last year that “instinct” told him the match against Kuwait should be his last and he bowed out in front of nearly 59,000 fans in Kolkata.
But on Thursday, India head coach Manolo Marquez announced the return of India’s most-capped player for the March international window.
India are out of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup and are now targeting the Asian Cup in 2027.
“The qualification for the Asian Cup is very crucial for us. Given the importance of the tournament and the matches ahead, I discussed with Sunil Chhetri about making a comeback to strengthen the national team,” Marquez said in a statement from the All India Football Federation.
“He agreed, and so we have included him in the squad.”
India play a friendly against Maldives on March 19, in preparation for an Asian Cup qualifier against Bangladesh on March 25.
Football has struggled to find its feet among the 1.4 billion people of India, where the sport is dwarfed by the nation’s longstanding cricket obsession.
Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter once called India a “sleeping giant” of football.
Chhetri is a sporting icon in cricket-mad India.
The diminutive striker, who is 1.7 meters (5ft 7in) tall, made his debut against fierce rivals Pakistan in 2005 and scored India’s only goal.
Chhetri had two brief but unsuccessful spells in Portugal and the United States, but has spent most of his career in India.
In 2009 he was offered a contract by London club Queens Park Rangers, in England’s second tier, but he could not get a work permit.
