SPORT Sunday 10 December 2017
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SPORT Sunday 10 December 2017 PAGE | 27 PAGE | 26 PAGE | 28-29 McIlroy to undertakeke Conte gives up on ShastriShas expects India busy build-up to Chelsea title hopes ttoo shed their ‘poor 2018 Masters after West Ham defeat travellers’ tag Gulf Cup officials set to meet in Doha The Peninsula/AFP by hosts Kuwait, Oman and the Al Youseff said the KFA has United Arab Emirates in the other arranged for eighteight FIFA referees ulf Cup organisers will group. to officiate in thehe matches, a reportreport officially announce Kuwait have stepped up prep- on Al Kass sportsorts channel web site tomorrow that the arations to stage the two-week said. tournament will be event by sending out official It was alsoso reported that a played in Kuwait, a invites to regional football high-level ddelegationelegation of the Gsenior official said yesterday. federations. AGCFF was inn Kuwait to oversee “We will officially announce it In a televised statement, the venues to be used during the on Monday (December 11),” said Sheikh Ahmed Al Yousef, Presi- event. Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation dent of the Kuwait Football Two days aago,go, Qatar Football (AGCFF) General Secretary Jassim Association (KFA), was quoted as Association (QFA)(QFA) President Al Rumaihi. saying that ‘the popular tourna- Sheikh Hamadad binbin KhalifaKhalifa binbin The 23rd edition of the hugely ment is certain to see the Ahmed Al Thanini had congratulated popular football tournament will participation of all eight teams’. He the KFA after its suspension was be held between December 22 and added that the opening match will lifted by worldld governinggoverning bodybody January 5. be played between Kuwait and FIFA. “It will take place at exactly the Saudi Arabia at the Jaber Al Ahmad After the same dates, the 22nd of Decem- International Stadium. decision was ber to the fifth of January,” Al The 60,000-capacity venue announced byy Rumaihi said, the first confirma- will host one of the two semi-finals FIFA Presidentnt tion from a Gulf Cup official that and the final. Infantino inn the competition would go ahead. FIFA President Gianni Infan- Kuwait City,y, He added that organisers were tino is also set to attend the Qatar offeredd to still waiting for confirmation from opening and closing games of the move the Gulff CupCup which the federations of Saudi Arabia, the tournament, it was reported was to be heldd in Doha initially. United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, yesterday. “We wishh success to allall thethe but it is widely expected teamsms set to participateparticipate they will now take part in QATAR SQUAD FOR FRIENDLY: in thehe upcoming GulfGulf the eight team Cup,”,” the QFA President Ahmed Fateh Ali Moaaz competition. said inin a TV interviewinterview onon At the draw ceremony Abdulkareem Salem Hassan Al Haydos Thursday.ursday. conducted in September, Meanwhile,Meanwhile, Qatar’sQatar’s Almehdi Ali Akram Afif defending champions interimerim coachcoach FelixFelix Qatar were placed in Abdulkareem Hassan Asim Madibo Sancheznchez yesterday Group A of the eight-team Ahmed Moeen Pedro Miguel namedmed a young squad Gulf Cup. set to faceface LiechtensteinLiechtenstein Three-time champions Usman Alyahri Bassam Alruwawi in DohaDoha onon DecemberDecember Qatar, who beat Saudi Ara- Karim Boudiaf Saad Al Sheeb 14. bia in the final of the last SanchezSanchez alsoalso event held in November Ismail Mohammed Ahmed Yasser includeduded feared striker 2014, will be joined by Mutab Khizar Mohammed Muntari Hassansan Al HaydosHaydos indi-indi- teams from Iraq, Yemen catingng the team’s intent and Bahrain. Salem Al Hajri Hamad Al Obadily to makemake thethe most ofof thethe World Cup-bound Coach: Felix Sanchez matchtch practice needed Saudi Arabia will be joined aheadad of the Gulf Cup.Cup. Qatar Football coach Feliz Sanchez Fencing: Sang-young, Besbes eye title glory in Qat ar Fawad Hussain the last-64 stage. A total of four A Qatari fencer (right) in action against her Russian counterpart during the The Peninsula Qatari female fencers also second day of Qatar Fencing Grand Prix at Aspire Dome yesterday. showcased their skills in yester- lympic champion Park day’s qualifying stage. Sang-young and defend- The quartet includes Fatima Oing champion Sarra Hamad, Thkrayat Al Abdulla, Besbes will be eyeing the men’s Wahda Al Abdulla and Haroun and women’s titles respectively Hassan Ghada. as stage is set for the marathon All the four Qatari fencers finals day of the prestigious displayed a gutsy performance Qatar Fencing Grand Prix in and earned coveted points Doha today. against their higher-ranked The first two days at state- opponents, which will give of-the-art Aspire Dome them confidence as they bid to witnessed qualifying rounds of improve their world men’s and women’s epee events rankings. as a total of 350 fencers from 45 The Qatar GP was started countries including several with preliminary round of men’s world and Olympic champions competition on Friday. A total are taking part in the three-day of eight Qatari fencers also par- event. ticipated in the qualifying stage The action on the final day with Abdullah Sayyari and Ali will begin with the last-64 Al Sulaiti displaying impres- stages in both the men’s and sive performances. women’s categories. The finals Both notched up a win of both the categories will be against top fencers during their played from 5pm to 7pm. qualifying campaign before South Korea’s Sang-young, bowing out in the first stage. who won gold medal in Rio Mohammed Ali Mirzaei, Olympics last year, will be seen Yousef Al Bader, Khalid Al Mulla, in action in the last-64 stage as Abdulrahman Al Sowaidi, Soud he will square off with Belgian Al Malki and Mehdi Feriani were Xavier Ferot Francois in his first the other Qatari fencers who match. resistance in his title-hunt from Besbes, 28, a Tunisian star team world championship gold stage were competed with Ital- gained valuable experience on Sang-young was exempted Italian duo of former world who won the women’s epee title medallist, and Italy’s Mara Nav- ian, South Korean and Chinese the inaugural day. from qualifying round along champion Paolo Pizzo and last year in Doha, will meet Kris- arria can be a tough nut to crack fencers dominating their The Qatar Fencing Grand with 17 other top ranked Enrico Garozzo, a bronze tina Kussk of Estonia in her first for Besbes in her title-defense. opponents. Prix is being held since 2004 fencers. medalist at world champion- clash. Yesterday at the Qatar Fenc- As many as 11 fencers from and is regarded as one of the The South Korean star, how- ships, who will also begin his Estonia’s Julia Beljajeva, a ing Grand Prix, the women’s Italy, eight from South Korea toughest events in International ever, is expected to face tough campaign in last 64-stage. 2013 world champion and 2017 qualifying rounds for last-64 and six from China qualified for Fencing Federation calendar. 26 SPORT SUNDAY 10 DECEMBER 2017 Vidal fires Bayern eight points clear Berlin AFP rturo Vidal’s fourth goal in as many league Agames shot Bayern Munich to a 1-0 win at Ein- tracht Frankfurt and an eight-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga yesterday. Bayern’s win means that they cannot be caught before the winter break, which starts December 17, and makes them ‘Herbstmeister’ (Autumn champions) for the seventh season in a row. Bayern head coach Jupp Heynckes rang the changes from Tuesday’s 3-1 win at West Ham United’s Marko Arnautovic scores a goal home to Paris Saint-Germain past Chelsea’s Thibaut Courtois during the English 3-1 in the Champions League, Premier League match at London Stadium in Britain starting midweek goalscor- yesterday. ers Robert Lewandowski and Corentin Tolisso on the bench alongside to Germany inter- nationals Sebastian Rudy and Mats Hummels. The biggest shock how- Conte gives up on Chelsea title ever was that third-choice goalkeeper Tom Starke, who had been working in Bayern’s academy after retiring last season, was thrown into the fray after Sven Ulreich, who hopes after West Ham defeat has played in place of Manuel Neuer since the Germany London games, we must have another Stoke, who replied through captain fractured his foot in AFP target.” Shawcross, have now lost 1,000 September, injured his groin Elsewhere, Tottenham Hot- top-flight games. Spurs moved in the warm-up. helsea manager Anto- spur ended a run of four games above Arsenal into fifth place on The 36-year-old Starke nio Conte declared his without victory with a thumping goal difference ahead of their took the field after coming out side’s Premier League 5-1 home win over Stoke City at local rivals’ trip to Southampton of retirement in and being title defence over Wembley in which Harry Kane on Sunday. named in the club’s Champi- after Marko Arnau- scored twice. Burnley are level on points ons League squad in Ctovic’s goal condemned the Having previously been with the two north London heav- September. Frankfurt made champions to a 1-0 defeat at beaten by Burnley, Manchester yweights after Scott Arfield a bright start, but Bayern West Ham United yesterday. City and Crystal Palace, Chelsea scored in a 1-0 home win over grabbed what proved to be Chelsea’s defeat, their first in have lost just one fewer game Watford, who had Marvin Zeege- the winner on 20 minutes. eight league games, left them 11 than in the entirety of their tri- laar sent off for a studs-up foul Joshua Kimmich swung in a points adrift of leaders Manches- umphant 2016-17 campaign.