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Friday March 29, 2024

BITS AND PIECES

By our correspondents
March 20, 2017

BITS AND PIECES

 

Insigne at the double against Empoli

MILAN: Lorenzo Insigne hit a brace as Napoli survived a late fightback by Empoli to claim a 3-2 win on Sunday that moved them up to second in Serie A seven points behind Juventus.

Napoli looked on their way to an easy but maiden win at the Carlo Castellani stadium after Insigne struck twice, once from the spot, and Dries Mertens added a third before half-time.

But the visitors, who had managed just four draws from seven previous visits, were made to endure a nervous finale before claiming a 19th win of the campaign that maintained hopes of Champions League football next season.

Leaders Juventus, bidding for a record sixth consecutive title, sit seven points ahead but can stretch their lead over Napoli to 10 points with a win at Sampdoria later Sunday.

Roma host Sassuolo in the late game when they will be looking to reclaim second spot from Napoli, having dropped to third at one point further behind.

Despite scoring only 15 goals all season — seven less than Serie A’s leading scorer Andrea Belotti of Torino — Empoli gave a warm welcome to former coach Maurizio Sarri.

But the warm feelings extended to the visitors ended after just a few minutes.

Napoli won a soft penalty following Andrea Costa’s clumsy challenge on Mertens, who saw his soft shot parried by Lukasz Skorupski’s outstretched foot.

A rampant Napoli broke the deadlock on 19 minutes when Insigne fired Mertens’ nod-down in the area past Skorupski at his near post.

Mertens doubled their lead minutes later with a superbly-struck free kick from outside the area that beat Skorupski at his near top corner.

Napoli won a second penalty when Jose Callejon was tripped in the area just after the half hour, and this time Insigne made no mistake, firing past Skorupski down low from the spot.

 

Schmeichel one of the best, says Shakespeare

LONDON: Craig Shakespeare believes Kasper Schmeichel must be viewed as one of the game’s top goalkeepers after his saves enabled Leicester City to record a fourth successive victory.

First-half goals by Riyad Mahrez, Robert Huth and Jamie Vardy gave the champions a 3-2 win at West Ham United on Saturday, easing the relegation fears that led to manager Claudio Ranieri’s sacking last month.

But West Ham hit back through Manuel Lanzini and Andre Ayew and Leicester needed Schmeichel to make two high-quality saves from Andy Carroll before they could celebrate another win.

“He is in the best form I’ve seen since I’ve been here, so I don’t see why not,” said Shakespeare when asked whether Schmeichel — son of Manchester United goalkeeping great Peter — deserved to be bracketed alongside the Premier League’s star shot-stoppers. “All goalkeepers are important, but to bring off those crucial saves was vitally important.”

 

Naya Nazimabad beat SJAS in festival T20 match

By our correspondent

KARACHI: Naya Nazimabad defeated Sports Journalists Association of Sindh (SJAS) by seven wickets in a festival T20 game which held under floodlights here at Naya Nazimabad Cricket Ground on Saturday night.

SJAS XI accumulated 133-5 with skipper Mohsin Reza scoring 31. Anees-ur-Rehman (29), Zahid Ghaffar (16), Mansoor Baig (15) and Asghar Azeem (14) were the other prominent scorers.

Qaiser, Aamir, Altaf, Rashid and Imran got one wicket each.

Naya Nazimabad achieved the target in the 17th over for the loss of three wickets.

Rafiq (37) and Kamal (35) were the main contributors. Alam Zeb Safi, Kashif Farooqui and Shehzad Ali got one wicket each.

 

Yasir named fourth player in Davis Cup squad

KARACHI: The Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) on Sunday announced that Yasir Khan has been named as the fourth member of Pakistan Davis Cup team for the tie against Hong Kong.

Pakistan will meet Hong Kong in the Davis Cup tie, which is the semi-final of Asia Oceania Group 2, scheduled from April 7-9 at the Pakistan Sports Board in Islamabad.

The spot for the fourth player fell vacant when Muhammad Abid Ali Akbar announced his unavailability for the tie. Other team members are Aisam-ul-Haq, Aqeel Khan and Muhammad Abid Mushtaq. The PTF has already announced to hold a training camp in Lahore from March 21.

 

Tour de France loses another former champion

PARIS: The Tour de France has lost its third former champion in as many months with the death aged 77 on Sunday of 1967 winner Roger Pingeon.

Pingeon succumbed to a heart attack at his home in the Ain region, local mayor Georges Gouly told AFP.

On December 30 Switzerland’s 1950 Tour de France champion Ferdi Kubler died at the age of 97, then on February 7 Roger Walkowiak, the 1956 winner, passed away aged 89.

“He was a man of great humility... this year he was celebrating the 50th anniversary of his triumph,” Gouly said of Pingeon.

Two years after his greatest triumph Pingeon finished second in the Tour to Belgian cycling legend Eddy Merckx, but as consolation he won that season’s Vuelta in Spain.

The deaths of Pingeon, Kubler and Walkowiak leave 23 surviving winners of cycling’s blue riband, the celebrated group led by 88-year-old Federico Bahamontes, the 1959 champion.