Sports
Liverpool strike late to win emotional PL opener
Liverpool launched the Premier League with a dramatic 4-2 win over Bournemouth at Anfield on Friday in an emotionally charged match featuring tributes to Diogo Jota and Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo reporting racial abuse.
The winger responded brilliantly with both of the Cherries’ goals as they came from down two as Andoni Iraola’s side exposed the same defensive weaknesses Crystal Palace did in Sunday’s Community Shield victory.
– Prem opener paused over report of racist abuse
– Liverpool pay emotional tribute to Jota at opener
– Liverpool summon inner strength for dramatic win
But forgotten man Federico Chiesa, Liverpool’s solitary signee last summer who has barely been featured and has been linked with a move elsewhere, volleyed home his first league goal in the 88th minute before Mohamed Salah scored for the eighth time in nine opening-day fixtures.
Summer signee Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo had earlier put the Reds up 2-0.
In between those goals, the game was briefly paused after Semenyo reported to referee Anthony Taylor in the 28th minute that he was targeted with racist language by a member of the crowd.
Semenyo, who is Black, needed to be consoled by teammates after the incident but played on and scored in the 64th and 76th minutes to draw Bournemouth level.
“I don’t know how Ant’s played on, to be honest, and come up with those goals,” said Bournemouth captain Adam Smith, who added that Semenyo was “a little bit down.”
Liverpool manager Arne Slot said the incident “takes the shine off” his team’s victory.
It was the first competitive match at Anfield since Jota — a popular player for Liverpool — and his brother, André Silva, were killed in a car crash in Spain on July 3.
Ahead of kickoff, fans held up placards to spell out “DJ20” and “AS30” in two of the stands during a period of silence in honor of the Portuguese players.
Players from the Liverpool team stood arm in arm around the center circle, and staff and players from both clubs wore black armbands.
“The main emotion should be how impressive and powerful the tribute for Diogo was,” Slot told a news conference. “The banner the Kop showed, the way they sang ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone,’ the way they sung for Diogo throughout the game.
“It was all so impressive and so powerful.”
Liverpool had announced the £23 million ($31m) signing of 18-year-old Parma center back Giovanni Leoni before kickoff, but it would be no surprise for this result to hasten the pursuit of Crystal Palace’s Marc Guéhi with Ibrahima Konaté, in particular, looking shaky.
It had begun so well with another Premier Leaguer debutant, Ekitike, starting to pay back his £69 million ($94m) transfer fee with a first-half goal, having also scored last weekend.
Ekitike thought he had been denied by the season’s first VAR controversy after just 14 minutes when Marcos Senesi appeared to flick the ball away on the halfway line, but VAR ruled it was not a clear handball or the denial of a goal-scoring opportunity.
The France under-21 international then benefited from a more fortuitous touch off the defender, latching onto a mistake after his own miscontrol of Alexis Mac Allister’s pass to run through and comfortably send Djordje Petrovic the wrong way.
He then headed over before halftime, but his assimilation into the role vacated by Jota and Darwin Núñez, transferred to Al Hilal, was evident as Ekitike laid on the return pass for Gakpo to glide past a couple of defenders and stroke past Petrovic.
But when Slot replaced fullbacks Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez, two of the four new signees making their debuts, Bournemouth clinically exploited the unfamiliarity of midfielder Wataru Endo playing at right back.
David Brooks raced down the left, and Konaté could not prevent him sending over a teasing, low cross that Semenyo cleverly finished.
Slot made immediate changes, bringing on defender Joe Gomez despite just two days’ training after three weeks out with injury, to allow Endo to move into midfield and club-record signee Florian Wirtz to move to a false nine for Ekitike.
But when Salah, of all people, gave away possession on the edge of the opposition penalty area, a fast 4-on-2 counterattack saw Semenyo fire home, only for Chiesa, already a cult hero despite his lack of action, to be the savior.
Salah completed the scoring in added time and was last to leave the pitch, with tears in his eyes, having stood applauding the Kop singing Jota’s song.
Salah also repeated Jota’s two-armed celebration after his goal, and Ekitike and Gakpo also dedicated their goals to Jota.
“Normally at 2-2, everyone knows which player I look to at that moment in time. I would have loved to bring in Diogo Jota, but I could not, for terrible reasons,” Slot said.
“But tonight, the fans and the players did what he did for us many times in the past.”
Information from ESPN’s Beth Lindop, PA and The Associated Press was used in this report.
Barcelona‘s squad spending limit has risen by almost €100 million ($116m) to €433m ($501m), LaLiga announced on Tuesday, increasing the Spanish champions’ chances of being able to invest in the squad this summer.
Real Madrid still have the highest cap in the league at €761m ($880m), with Atlético Madrid ranking third behind the Clásico rivals with a limit of €336m ($389m).
Villarreal (€173m, $200m) and Athletic Club (€132m, $153m) complete the top five, while Levante (€17m, $19.6m), Sevilla (€22m, $25m) and Getafe (€34m, $39m) are operating with the three lowest caps in the division.
The league’s squad cost limits, which are made public after each transfer window, denote the maximum amount that each club is permitted to spend on first-team players, as well as coaching staff, reserve and youth teams.
Barça’s new limit represents an increase of €82m ($95m) on the €351m ($406m) cap they had at the start of the season and brings fresh hope of new signings.
The Catalan club remain in excess of their limit, with club sources confirming spending on the squad is still over €500m ($579) annually, but they are getting ever closer to breaking even.
Until they reach that point, league regulations limit them to investing only a percentage of what they raise or save on new recruits.
Barça are currently in an electoral period, and therefore without a permanent president, but all three of the final candidates have claimed the club will be in a position to make signings by the summer.
Joan Laporta, who is seeking to be reelected for a second successive term, has said the team’s return to Spotify Camp Nou will boost spending capacity, while Víctor Font said he is already exploring “three or four” potential signings.
Marc Ciria, meanwhile, told ESPN Barça will be able to compete with anyone if he is elected.
“In terms of signings, under our financial plan, I expect to have the situation fully normalised so that we can go to the market on equal terms with any other club or institution,” he told ESPN.
“Barça will have the capacity to make relevant signings again to be able to win the next five Champions Leagues — a competition which we have not won in 11 years.”
ESPN has previously revealed that Barça are keen to strengthen in a variety of positions. A striker, a centre-back, a left winger and depth at full’back are all areas club sources say they will target.
There are no new teams in this week’s poll, and the top three squads held their places. After a week of blowout wins (that we will get to below), Oklahoma jumped Nebraska for the No. 4 ranking. Alabama and UCLA also edged closer to the top of the table. For now, there hasn’t been much of a shakeup, but with still-undefeated Tennessee playing also-ranked LSU in a three-game series, perhaps this week could be a chaotic one for the best team in the nation.
Player to watch
Kendall Wells, C, Oklahoma
Oklahoma’s offense, as we’ll get to below, has been on fire this season, and Wells has been just as responsible for its performance as anybody. The catcher already has a whopping 15 home runs on the season. For reference, Oklahoma’s next opponent, North Texas, has 19 home runs on the season…as a team.
Top moment
WHAT A NIGHT 🤩
The Sooners scored 21 runs in a singular inning!#NCAASoftball x 🎥 SECN+ / @OU_Softball pic.twitter.com/80cT5DjQZz
— NCAA Softball (@NCAASoftball) March 1, 2026
In the third inning of a 29-6 win over Alabama State on Saturday, Oklahoma drove in a stunning 21 runs, the second-highest single-inning run total in NCAA softball history. The historic frame included two grand slams and 24 plate appearances.
Game to watch
No. 1 Tennessee vs. No. 16 LSU
6 p.m. on Friday (SEC Network+)
Undefeated Tennessee has already notched five wins against ranked opponents this season and will look to continue that streak in a three-game series against LSU that begins on Friday. The Tigers, on the other hand, have lost their only two ranked matchups–in a tight loss to Duke and a shutout against UCLA. Can they get a statement win against the Lady Vols?
How to watch
Everything college softball on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ACC Network, Big 12 Now on ESPN+, ESPN3, ESPN+, SEC Network+ and ACCNX is accessible here, in addition to being available on the ESPN App.
What’s the full schedule?
You can check out the complete scoreboard here to stay up to date this spring.
Subscribe to ESPN | Stream college softball on ESPN
Week 4 Top 25
Here is the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 ranking, plus each team’s record and next game.
All times Eastern.
1. Tennessee
Previous rank: 1
Record: 19-0
Next game: Tuesday vs. Belmont, 5 p.m., SEC Network+
2. Texas Tech
Previous rank: 2
Record: 22-1
Next game: Friday at Houston, 7 p.m., ESPN+
3. Texas
Previous rank: 3
Record: 19-1
Next game: Friday at South Carolina, 6 p.m.
4. Oklahoma
Previous rank: 5
Record: 19-2
Next game: Tuesday at North Texas, 7 p.m., ESPN+
5. Nebraska
Previous rank: 4
Record: 14-5
Next game: Thursday vs. South Dakota State, 5 p.m., Big Ten Plus
6. Alabama
Previous rank: 7
Record: 20-0
Next game: Friday at Ole Miss, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
7. UCLA
Previous rank: 9
Record: 18-3
Next game: Friday vs. Wisconsin, 10 p.m.
8. Florida
Previous rank: 6
Record: 23-1
Next game: Saturday vs. Missouri, 1 p.m., SEC Network+
9. Arkansas
Previous rank: 8
Record: 19-1
Next game: Friday vs. Georgia, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
10. Florida State
Previous rank: 10
Record: 17-4
Next game: Wednesday vs. Jacksonville University, 4 p.m.
11. Virginia Tech
Previous rank: 12
Record: 16-2
Next game: Thursday vs. Michigan, 6:30 p.m.
T12. Georgia
Previous rank: 11
Record: 17-5
Next game: Wednesday vs. Georgia State, 6 p.m., SEC Network+
T12. Oklahoma State
Previous rank: 16
Record: 15-5
Next game: Tuesday vs. Missouri State, 7 p.m., ESPN+
14. Arizona
Previous rank: 14
Record: 17-5
Next game: Thursday vs. BYU, 8 p.m., ESPN+
15. Texas A&M
Previous rank: 15
Record: 15-7
Next game: Wednesday vs. Louisiana Tech, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
16. LSU
Previous rank: T17
Record: 17-4
Next game: Friday at Tennessee, 6 p.m., SEC Network+
17. Mississippi State
Previous rank: 19
Record: 18-2
Next game: Wednesday at UAB, 6 p.m., ESPN+
18. Oregon
Previous rank: T17
Record: 13-6
Next game: Wednesday at Oregon State, 9 p.m., ESPN+
19. Stanford
Previous rank: 13
Record: 11-6
Next game: Friday vs. Pitt, 9 p.m.
20. Virginia
Previous rank: 21
Record: 19-1
Next game: Tuesday at Radford, 2 p.m., ESPN+
21. Arizona State
Previous rank: 23
Record: 19-3
Next game: Friday vs. Utah, 8 p.m., ESPN+
22. Washington
Previous rank: 24
Record: 15-6
Next game: Tuesday vs. Seattle, 9:30 p.m., Big Ten Plus
23. Grand Canyon
Previous rank: 25
Record: 22-0
Next game: Thursday vs. Wisconsin, 5 p.m.
24. South Carolina
Previous rank: 22
Record: 15-6
Next game: Friday vs. Texas, 6 p.m.
25. Duke
Previous rank: 20
Record: 12-9
Next game: Friday at Cal, 5 p.m.
- Coach Hesson, Aqib Javed interfered in selection matters: sources.
- Dar complains 20 players selected, but captain, coach chose wrong 15.
- Salman Agha showed no resistance on selection matter, says Dar
KARACHI: Following Pakistan’s poor performance in the Super Four stage of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and the team’s exit from the event, a member of the national selection committee, Aleem Dar, has decided to resign.
According to highly reliable sources, the ICC Elite Panel umpire stepped down due to extraordinary interference in selection matters by head coach Mike Hesson and the silence of the influential selection committee member Aaqib Javed.
Aleem Dar complains that selectors had announced Pakistan’s best 20 players, but then the captain and coach chose the wrong 15, followed by incorrect selections in the playing XI. As a result, selectors are left only to face criticism.
During the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, Aleem Dar had expressed reservations over the inclusion of former captain Babar Azam and all-rounder Shadab Khan in the squad despite their lack of performance. However, Captain Salman Ali Agha, who, according to Aleem Dar, did not even merit a place in the squad as captain along with Aaqib Javed, showed no resistance. Coach Mike Hesson openly had the final say in selection matters.
Aleem Dar had also proposed that experienced wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan should be played at number six instead of wicketkeeper Usman Khan. His stance was that if Shadab and Babar could be part of the team despite their underperformance, then Mohammad Rizwan also deserved another opportunity.
In the current circumstances, Aleem Dar’s resignation is being viewed as a principled decision. He believes that Allah has granted him great respect through cricket, and he does not wish to work as a puppet; therefore, it is better for him to step down.
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