TUESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2018 23 Rooney Barca rallies to win inspires DC United to Spanish Supercup Dembele fires his team to the first trophy of the Spanish football season last-gasp win AFP | Tangiers, Morocco arcelona battled back to defeat Sevilla 2-1 and win Bthe Spanish Supercup on Sunday with French World Cup winner Ousmane Dembele hitting a sensational winner to help give Lionel Messi a win- ning start as captain. It was Barcelona’s 13th Su- percup and sixth in the last nine seasons. However, Sevilla squandered a golden chance to send the match into extra-time when Wissam Ben Yedder missed a last-minute penalty. Pablo Sarabia gave Sevilla the lead after just nine minutes on a counter-attack. Gerard Pique, who announced Ousmane Dembele in action his international retirement with Spain on Saturday, levelled Wayne Rooney (left) set up the winner for Luciano Acosta – bringing up three minutes before the inter- Marc-Andre Ter Stegen brought than three non-EU players. the Argentinian’s hat-trick – seconds after a last-ditch tackle while his val for Barcelona after he was down Aleix Vidal in the area as The Spanish football fed - goalkeeper was upfield fastest to respond to a loose ball the Sevilla youngster closed in eration (RFEF) said on Satur- following a Messi free-kick. on an equaliser. day that there would be no AFP | Washington 33 That set the stage for French But Ben Yedder hit a weak The win makes Messi restrictions on players from star Dembele to take the head- penalty which was easily saved Barcelona’s most outside the EU for the Super- moment of magic from lines with a 78th minute scream- by Ter Stegen. decorated player of all cup, despite only three being A Wayne Rooney fired DC er from 25 yards and again Mes- The match had endured a time with 33 trophies, one allowed in squads for league United to a last-gasp 3-2 vic- KNOW WHAT si played a crucial role with the controversial build-up when more than the former matches. tory over Orlando in Major key pass. Sevilla threatened to file a com- midfielder Andrés Iniesta Sevilla said they could file a League Soccer on Sunday. There was still time for late plaint against Barcelona if the complaint if Barca name an “im- The two sides had appeared drama when Barca goalkeeper La Liga champions fielded more proper lineup” in Tangier. to be heading for a 2-2 draw at Rooney played his Audi Field as Orlando broke #500 game On Feb- out following a United corner ruary 11, 2012 after in the fifth minute of stoppage 10 years in interna- Dembele puts troubled Barca past behind him time. tional arena With United goalkeeper Da- Reuters | Madrid Dortmund last year for a fee na circulated even as he lifted high expectations for him. He vid Ousted stranded upfield, off the bottom of the Eastern which could rise to 147 million the World Cup with France in has great quality and is here Orlando’s Will Johnson ad- Conference. usmane Dembele endured euros ($167.3 million). July. with us,” Valverde said. vanced past halfway with an United remain rooted to the Oa problematic first season A severe hamstring injury However, Barcelona coach “He took part and he scored a empty net ahead of him. foot of the standings however at Barcelona but after pro - kept him out for nearly four Ernesto Valverde says he counts goal, which I think is something But a superb last-ditch with 21 points from 20 games. ducing a special goal to win months and he suffered anoth- on Dembele and he started to be happy about. As the game tackle from Rooney upended United have several games the Catalans the Spanish Su- er injury setback shortly after the forward alongside Lionel went on, he got better.” Ousted, and the former Eng- in hand over the teams above per Cup, the Frenchman has returning in January. Messi and Luis Suarez against With Suarez and Messi both land and Manchester United them however, and could yet started his second firing on all When he was fit the winger Sevilla. 31 and losing speed, if not qual- star then launched a long ball conceivably mount a charge cylinders. played tentatively, showing little In the second half, as Barce- ity, Dembele’s urgency could into the area met by Luciano towards the playoffs in the Dembele rifled home a long- of the imagination and quali- lona struggled to break down give Barcelona a vital outlet this Acosta, who nodded home the closing months of the season. range strike on Sunday to help ty that persuaded Barcelona to the Andalusians, Dembele took season. winner. Rooney had also been in - Barcelona to win over Sevilla sign him as a replacement for a step forward and became the The forward is capable of us- Argentinian striker Acos- strumental in setting up Acos- in Tangier. Neymar. game’s most dangerous player, ing both feet equally well, his ta’s goal completed a hat-trick ta’s first goal of the game in It was a rare moment of joy Catalan media questioned his ramming home the winner in goal lashed home with his right and gave United a vital three stoppage time at the end of the for the 21-year-old forward professionalism and rumours the 78th minute. foot even though he says his left points as they attempt to move first half. since his move from Borussia that he would leave Barcelo - “He is with us and we have is stronger. Lewandowski hat-trick leads Bayern to Frankfurt cup revenge AFP | Frankfurt, Germany he appeared to elbow the Polish striker late in the game. brilliant hat-trick from Rob- Bayern’s Alaba escapes There was no stopping Le - A ert Lewandowski led Bay- wandowski, however, who ern Munich to a comfortable 5-0 danced free of Abraham to rifle victory over Eintracht Frankfurt ligament damage in his third goal on 54 minutes. in Sunday’s German Supercup, Kovac’s perfect evening was giving former Frankfurt coach Reuters | Munich sealed in the 63rd minute when Niko Kovac a memorable start to Kingsley Coman bundled in Bay- his reign at the Bavarian giants. ayern Munich defender ern’s fourth. Kovac returned to Frankfurt BDavid Alaba suffered a The new Bayern coach had fo- for his first competitive game bruised knee bone in Sunday’s cused on low crosses in training in charge of the Bundesliga German Supercup win over the week before, and watched winners, having ended two suc- Eintracht Frankfurt with scans happily on as David Alaba’s low cessful years at Eintracht with ruling out ligament damage, cross found Coman at the far a shock win over Bayern in last Bayern’s Robert Lewandowski in action the Bundesliga club said yes- David Alaba during training post to make it 4-0. season’s German Cup final. terday. Thiago delivered the final Yet there was no time for sen- my former club, but I think it fired a header across Frederik Austria left back Alaba sus- handled daily by the medical flourish five minutes from time, timentality on Sunday, as Bay- will still be a good season for Roennow in the Frankfurt goal. tained the injury to his left team. The healing process will gratefully receiving a pass from ern took brutal revenge for their Frankfurt. The striker nodded in a sec- knee in a collision with Frank- be looked at on a day-to-day Coman to slot home Bayern’s cup humiliation, Lewandowski “I am very optimistic for this ond from almost exactly the furt defender Danny Da Costa basis to determine when Alaba fifth. leaving the Frankfurt defence season. I have a great team and a same position five minutes later, late in the match. will be able to return to train- Sandro Wagner could even in tatters. lot of strength in depth.” heading Arjen Robben’s corner “The joint will be rested and ing,” Bayern said. have made it six, missing an “It was a really good perfor- A ruthless Bayern took the past the stranded Roennow. open goal from two yards out, mance today, we scored at all the lead with their first chance on The game could have turned bringing down Mijat Gacinovic rough treatment from the Frank- but that didn’t stop Bayern cel- right moments,” Kovac told ZDF. 21 minutes. Joshua Kimmich’s in Frankfurt’s favour just before in front of goal. furt defence, and Eintracht cap- ebrating a winning start under “Of course I feel some sympa- cross picked out Lewandowski half-time when Mats Hummels At the other end, Le - tain David Abraham was also Kovac and a successfully defend- thy for my former players and at the far post and the Polish star escaped with a yellow card after wandowski faced increasingly lucky to escape a red card when ed Supercup title.