Established 1961 15 Thursday, December 17, 2020 Sports Dortmund’s new caretaker coach gets a winning start Gladbach snatch late draw as Stindl claims hat-trick

BERLIN: ’s new caretaker coach Stindl hat-trick Edin Terzic made a winning start Tuesday after club Union, who host Dortmund on Friday, were captain netted a late winner to seal a held to a 2-2 draw at VfB Stuttgart, whose two- 2-1 victory at Werder Bremen. The 38-year-old metre tall striker Sasa Kalajdzic came off the Terzic replaced , who was sacked bench to score two late goals. Union were 2-0 up Sunday less than 24 hours after a 5-1 thrashing at with five minutes left thanks to goals by defender home by Stuttgart. “It’s always important to come Marvin Friedrich and Liverpool loanee Taiwo back with a win after such a brutal defeat,” match- Awoniyi. However Kalajdzic scored with a header, winner Reus told Sky. then chested down and fired home, his shot sur- “After a change of coach, the team knows it has viving scrutiny for a handball from the VAR, to let itself down. “We were up against it and hopefully claim a point. we have got ourselves on the right track.” Terzic has Hertha Berlin remain in mid-table after their a contract for the rest of the season and inspired goalless draw at second-from-bottom Mainz. Dortmund to their first win in four league games Earlier, Borussia Moenchengladbach captain Lars while Bremen now have four straight defeats. “It Stindl completed a hat-trick with an equaliser in was important we showed a reaction,” said Terzic, the fifth minute of added time to snatch a point in who was Slaven Bilic’s assistant coach at West Ham their 3-3 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt. Stindl’s late from 2015-17. “We lost a few balls in areas where heroics saved a point at Frankfurt, but Gladbach, we can’t afford to do that, so there are lots of things who have drawn Manchester City in the last 16 of to work on.” the Champions League, are winless in their last five Dortmund took the lead in Bremen as Raphael games in all competitions. Guerreiro was fastest to stab home with 14 minutes After Stindl opened the scoring by curling in a gone after had a shot charged down. 14th minute free-kick, Frankfurt roared back with Bremen equalized on 28 minutes when Josh Sargent three unanswered goals including two by Portugal pounced on a mistake by Dortmund defender Manuel striker Andre Silva. Leading 3-1, Frankfurt played Akanji and the ball was worked to Kevin Moehwald the last 10 minutes with 10 men after captain David who fired home. Akanji made amends when he won Abraham was sent off for a second booking. With the penalty from which Reus scored at the second 90 minutes almost up, Gladbach won a penalty and attempt 12 minutes from time after Jiri Pavlenka saved Stindl stepped up to convert. Then he netted a last- BREMEN: Bremen’s German midfielder Maximilian Eggestein and Dortmund’s German forward the initial spot-kick. The away win lifts Dortmund to gasp header to seal the draw. The point leaves (left) vie for the ball during the German first division football fourth, three points behind league leaders Bayer Gladbach eighth, one place and four points ahead match Werder Bremen v Borussia Dortmund on December 15, 2020. —AFP Leverkusen, who were at Cologne yesterday. of Frankfurt. —AFP

£20 million ($27 million). Premier League West Brom have garnered sev- en points from their 13 matches so strugglers West far and have the worst defensive record in the Premier League, Role of heading Brom sack Bilic having conceded 26 goals. Bilic’s relations with the board appeared in football has LONDON: Slaven Bilic became tense from the start of the cam- the first Premier League manager paign with no discussions talking to lose his job this season when he place about extending or renew- to be reexamined was sacked by struggling West ing his contract which was due to Bromwich Albion yesterday. The run out at the end of this season. LONDON: The role of heading in football 52-year-old Croatian’s sacking “West Bromwich Albion have should be “seriously considered” amid con- comes with the side 19th in the today parted company with Head cerns of a link to an increased risk of demen- table but on the back of an Coach Slaven Bilic,” read a club tia, according to the outgoing Professional encouraging 1-1 draw with statement. “Albion would like to Footballers’ Association chief executive Manchester City on Tuesday. Bilic thank Slaven and his coaching Gordon Taylor. Taylor will step down from had been at the club for only 18 staff for their efforts in achieving his role at the end of the season after 40 months but had earned the admi- promotion last season and wishes West Bromwich Albion’s Croatian head coach Slaven Bilic years in charge after criticism of his per- ration of the fans after leading them all well in the future. West Brom to automatic promo- “The club will make no further ceived failure to act to tackle the issue of tion from the Championship last comment at this time.” Former Media reports suggest Allardyce makes him the latest first mana- dementia in the game. season. Although results had been England manager Sam Allardyce will be offered an 18-month con- gerial departure in a Premier Last week a group of former international generally poor this term Bilic had is among the favorites to fill the tract. In a sign that his appoint- League season for six years, rugby players announced they were taking been given little funding to bring vacancy. The 66-year-old’s last ment may be imminent, he has since it took 18 games for Cardiff legal action against the English and Welsh in players in the close season. His managerial post was with cancelled scheduled work with a City to dismiss Neil Warnock in governing bodies over the brain injuries they budget for transfers was limited at Everton, who he left in 2018. radio station. Bilic’s sacking the 2014-15 season. —AFP have suffered. Former England striker Gary Lineker is among those who have called for a complete ban on heading in training at all lev- Promoted Benevento, led by former AC Milan, Improta failed to keep his header down after Pepe els of the game. “We’ve got areas of research. Lazio, Benevento Juventus and Italy striker Filippo Inzaghi, move up Reina had pushed out Giuseppe Di Serio’s shot. to 13th after the draw, six points above the relega- Reina had to be a his best again moments later to We are looking at the number of players who tion zone. Lazio’s star striker Ciro Immobile gave keeper out Improta’s powerful shot. are getting dementia and trying to establish a share spoils in the away side a deserved lead with a superb strike Home hero Schiattarella then ruined his good causal link,” Taylor told Sky Sports. in the 25th minute, last season’s European Golden work in stoppage time when a wild tackle on “That’s why it’s so important that we look Inzaghi derby Shoe winner hooking Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s Joaquin Correa earned a straight red card. Crotone at the treatment of concussion and the num- cross past Lorenzo Montipo. remain bottom of the league after a goalless draw ber of times in training players are heading MILAN: Lazio continued their patchy Serie A form That goal came four minutes after Luis Alberto at Udinese in Tuesday’s early match. They are level with a 1-1 draw at Benevento on Tuesday as the had struck the upright with a low shot as Simone on six points with Genoa and Torino, and three the ball and to seriously consider the role of Inzaghi brothers faced off on the sidelines. Simone Inzaghi looked set to come out on top in the pitch- behind Fiorentina, who host Sassuolo on heading in the game. “I don’t know any foot- Inzaghi’s Lazio qualified for the knockout stages of side sibling rivalry. Benevento pulled level on the Wednesday having not won a league match since baller who regrets his career, but we also have the Champions League for the first time in over two stroke of half-time when Pasquale Schiattarella late October. Yesterday, leaders AC Milan traveled a duty of care and I think it is incumbent on decades midweek but have been wildly inconsistent volleyed home after Lazio failed to clear Gianluca to Genoa, while champions Juventus hosted the authorities that we don’t put off any Caprari’s corner. The hosts were unlucky to not take Atalanta and title chasers and Napoli domestically and sit eighth on 18 points after 12 youngster coming into the game because of matches. all three points when in the final minutes Riccardo faced off at the San Siro. —AFP worries about the future.” England World Cup winners Nobby Stiles and Jack Charlton have both died from dementia earlier this year, MLS teams struggle in CONCACAF while Bobby Charlton has also been diag- nosed with the disease. Champions League exits The FIELD study published last year found footballers were three-and-a-half times more MIAMI: Montreal Impact and New York, the MLS affiliate of Premier York City FC were dumped out of League giants Manchester City. likely to die of neurodegenerative disease the CONCACAF Champions The rout marked a difficult few than age-matched members of the general League quarter-finals on Tuesday days for City, who had only arrived population. In 2002, an inquest recorded a in a blow to Major League in Orlando earlier Tuesday after verdict of death by industrial disease in the Soccer’s hopes of ending a 20- three players tested positive for case of former England striker Jeff Astle year wait for victory in the compe- COVID-19 in the past week. The caused by repeated heading of the ball. Dr tition. New York’s campaign was premier continental competition Willie Stewart, who led the FIELD study, car- snuffed out in clinical fashion by for clubs in North America, Central ried out a new examination on Astle’s brain in Mexican side Tigres UANL, who America and the Caribbean, the 2014 which concluded that the 59-year-old are aiming to finally land the conti- CONCACAF Champions League’s nental crown after three losing final stages are taking place at a had died from chronic traumatic final appearances in 2016, 2017 neutral venue in Orlando, Florida, encephalopathy (CTE). —AFP and 2019. Tigres, runners-up to in order to mitigate risks of dis- ORLANDO: Deybi Flores #20 of CD Olimpia tackles Orji Okwonkwo #18 of Monterrey last season, cruised to a ruption from the coronavirus. Montreal Impact during the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal 4-0 victory, 5-0 on aggregate, Tigres will now face Olimpia of game at Exploria Stadium on December 15, 2020. —AFP after goals from French striker Honduras in Saturday’s semi-finals. Andre-Pierre Gignac, Leonardo The Central American club were Matches on TV Fernandez, Rafael Carioca and beaten 1-0 by Montreal in Canadian side were given a lifeline finally lifting the Champions . Tuesday’s early game but on 57 minutes, when German mid- League. The last MLS team to win (Local Timings) Gignac fired Tigres into the advanced on the away goals rule. fielder Amar Sejdic punished a the continental title crown was lead with a superb header in the Olimpia had beaten Impact 2-1 poor clearance by Olimpia defend- Los Angeles Galaxy in 2000. With ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE 30th minute before Uruguayan during the first leg in Montreal in er Carlos Pineda to curl home a Atlanta United trailing 3-0 from Aston Villa v Burnley 21:00 midfielder Fernandez added a March before the pandemic low finish from the edge of the the first leg heading into their beIN Sports HD 1 second with a cheeky backheeled brought sport in North America to area. second leg game against Mexico’s Sheffield United v Man United 23:00 finish in the 49th minute. Brazilian a standstill. Montreal, coached by But Henry’s side were unable to America, MLS’s last chance of beIN Sports HD 1 veteran Carioca then headed former France, Barcelona and carve out clear chances after that ending the title drought is likely to home Luis Quinones cross on 64 Arsenal star Thierry Henry, strug- as Olimpia held on to reach the rest with Los Angeles FC. Los ITALIAN CALCIO LEAGUE minutes before Aquino netted five gled to break down a resilient last four. Tuesday’s defeats for Angeles faced Mexico’s Cruz Azul minutes from time to complete the Olimpia side, who defended in AS Roma v Torino22:45 New York and Montreal length- in yesterday’s other quarter-final beIN Sports HD 4 scoring on a grim night for New depth for long periods. The ened the odds on an MLS team game. —AFP