Connect with us

Sports

Marseille downed by Lille in Ligue 1 as Lyon’s struggles continue | The Express Tribune

Published

on

Marseille downed by Lille in Ligue 1 as Lyon’s struggles continue | The Express Tribune


Olivier Giroud (C) headed home to complete the comeback for fifth-placed Lille. Photo: AFP


MARSEILLE:

Olivier Giroud came off the bench for Lille to condemn Marseille to a 2-1 home defeat on Sunday as fellow European contenders Lyon’s woes continued with another defeat.

Ethan Nwaneri’s first-half goal seemed to have put Marseille on course for a third straight win in the league as they look to consolidate the third and final Champions League spot.

But Belgian right-back Thomas Meunier struck back for seventh-placed Lille in the 49th minute to level matters at the Stade Velodrome.

Former Arsenal and France striker Giroud then netted his sixth goal of the season to send Lille in front inside the final five minutes.

The 39-year-old substitute headed in Meunier’s cross to complete the comeback for fifth-placed Lille and move them to within two points of their opponents.

“We didn’t deserve to be behind at half-time. So at the break, I told my players to keep doing what they’d been doing. We can be proud of what we’ve achieved, but we need to keep our feet on the ground,” Lille coach Bruno Genesio said.

“Olivier did us a world of good… He scored a brilliant striker’s goal.”

Defeat left Habib Beye’s Marseille on 49 points, also just two clear of fourth-placed Lyon after the seven-time French champions went down 2-1 at home to Monaco.

The defeat compounded a miserable week for Lyon after they were eliminated from the Europa League 3-1 on aggregate following Thursday’s 2-0 reversal at the Groupama Stadium to Spaniards Celta Vigo.

Paulo Fonseca’s charges are now without a win in their last six outings in all competitions.

“We played well up until the 70th minute, dominating the game and creating chances,” Lyon boss Fonseca said.

“We’ve been facing a lot of difficulties this season and the mistakes are piling up. I can accept that the referees don’t always have the best view, but how can some of the VAR decisions be explained?”

The Portuguese was particularly aggrieved by the decision not to award a penalty for a pull of the shirt on Lyon forward Endrick in the immediate build-up to the decisive spot-kick whistled for Monaco.

Pavel Sulc had sent the hosts ahead on 42 minutes but the principality side roared back courtesy of Maghnes Akliouche’s leveller shortly after the hour before Folarin Balogun netted from the spot in the 72nd minute to move Monaco into sixth and within one point of Lyon.

They sit on 46 points, two clear of Rennes, who played out a goalless stalemate with bottom-placed Metz.

Despite twice taking the lead against Strasbourg, second-bottom Nantes fell to a 3-2 loss after Joaquin Panichelli’s late brace and find themselves five points behind Auxerre, who occupy the relegation play-off spot.

Elsewhere, Paris FC took a big step towards ensuring their top-flight status for next season with a vital 3-2 home win over Le Havre.

The capital side sit on 31 points, with Le Havre now four behind them in 14th spot.



Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sports

Tiger Woods arrested at crash scene on suspicion of DUI, sheriff says

Published

on

Tiger Woods arrested at crash scene on suspicion of DUI, sheriff says


Tiger Woods showed signs of impairment and was arrested Friday at the scene of a car crash in which he struck another vehicle and rolled his Land Rover, authorities said.

Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek said Woods and the person in the other vehicle were not injured. Woods was able to crawl out of the passenger side of his Land Rover.

The crash occurred just after 2 p.m. not far from where Woods lives on Jupiter Island. Budensiek said Woods attempted to pass a pressure cleaner truck while driving on a two-land road. He swerved to avoid a collision as he was passing the truck, but clipped the back end of the truck’s trailer. Woods’ vehicle then rolled onto its driver’s side.

Budensiek said investigators at the scene found Woods to be showing signs of impairment. He did a breathalyzer test, which came out negative, but he refused to take a urine test. Authorities charged him with driving under the influence with property damage and refusal to submit to a lawful test, Budensiek said. Both charges are misdemeanors.

Woods’ manager at Excel Sports did not immediately respond to a text message seeking information.

Woods, 50, had spent the past several months recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon and another back surgery in October. The 15-time major champion competed for the first time in more than a year during Tuesday’s TGL finals, where his Jupiter Links GC team lost to the Los Angeles Golf Club.

He had been weighing whether to return to the PGA Tour at the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club, the first major of the season, which begins April 9.

Woods last competed on the PGA Tour in July 2024 when he missed the cut at the Open Championship at Royal Troon Golf Club in Scotland. He last played four rounds in a PGA Tour event at the 2024 Masters.

In February 2021, Woods suffered significant leg injuries in a one-car crash outside of Los Angeles, in which his SUV rolled several times and left him trapped in the car. He later had surgery to deal with “open fractures” to his lower right leg, had a rod placed in a tibia and had screws and pins inserted in his foot and ankle during emergency surgery. Woods was hospitalized for three weeks following the surgery.

At the 2021 Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, Woods said, “I’m lucky to be alive and also have a limb.” He said it was 50-50 as to whether part of his right leg could have been amputated.

He had at least one more surgery related to injuries from the crash in April 2023.

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach and The Associated Press contributed to this report.



Source link

Continue Reading

Sports

FIFA clears Fulham’s Diop, Ajax’s Bounida to play for Morocco

Published

on

FIFA clears Fulham’s Diop, Ajax’s Bounida to play for Morocco


Morocco got FIFA permission to select Fulham defender Issa Diop and Ajax midfielder Rayane Bounida among seven players recruited this month by the 2022 World Cup semifinalist ahead of the next edition in North America, and 16 in total since last March.

The 29-year-old Diop was a France youth and under-21 international and Bounida is among six players aged 20 or under changing eligibility this month to represent Morocco after playing youth games for Belgium or the Netherlands.

All have direct family ties to Morocco that allow them within FIFA rules to change national eligibility, typically when players have not played a senior competitive game for the first country they represented.

Diop and Bounida are in new coach Mohamed Ouahbi’s squad for World Cup warmup games against Ecuador on Friday in Madrid, and Paraguay on Tuesday in Lens, France.

At the 2026 World Cup Morocco is in a group with Brazil, Scotland and Haiti playing games, respectively, near New York, Boston and in Atlanta.

Morocco gets direct entry to the 2030 tournament as a co-host with Spain and Portugal, plus single games to be played in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.

The Morocco federation, under the leadership of Fouzi Lekjaa, an increasingly influential figure in soccer politics, has actively recruited players from a diaspora in Europe.

The squad which made World Cup history in Qatar as the first semifinalist from Africa included stars such as Hakim Ziyech and Sofyan Amrabat who had been Netherlands youth internationals.

The eligibility changes FIFA approved in March include Bounida and Genk midfielder Saif Eddien Lazar who had represented Belgium.

Players switching to Morocco from the Netherlands were Benjamin Khaderi and Sami Bouhoudane, both aged 18 from PSV Eindhoven, 20-year-old Utrecht defender Oualid Agougil and 18-year-old Ayoud Ouarghi from Feyenoord.

FIFA also approved nine more players changing eligibility from March to December last year, from France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway.



Source link

Continue Reading

Sports

Tiger Woods involved in rollover crash in Florida less than 2 weeks before Masters: reports

Published

on

Tiger Woods involved in rollover crash in Florida less than 2 weeks before Masters: reports


NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Tiger Woods was involved in a car crash in Florida on Friday, according to multiple reports. 

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office told ESPN that the crash happened on Jupiter Island on Friday afternoon. Woods’ condition was not immediately known. 

Woods competed in the TGL championship earlier this week with his girlfriend, Vanessa Trump, and her daughter, Kai, in the stands. It was his return to competitive golf after rupturing his Achilles last year, just ahead of the Masters.

Tiger Woods of Jupiter Links Golf Club looks on before the match against the Los Angeles Golf Club at SoFi Center on March 23, 2026, in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.  (Adam Glanzman/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images)

The 15-time major winner, five of which have come at Augusta, was noncommittal about playing at this year’s Masters. President Donald Trump said on “The Five” on Thursday that he would be at Augusta but not play.

Woods has had trouble behind the wheel in the past. In 2021, he got into a wreck that resulted in serious leg injuries that kept him off the golf course for months.

This is a breaking story. Check back for more updates.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.





Source link

Continue Reading

Trending