TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017 SPORTS Injured Busquets Togo fans attack keeper Sampaoli sets new to miss two games Agassa’s home after Cup loss standard at Sevilla PORT-GENTIL: Angry fans attacked the home of Togo’s Kossi MADRID: Sevilla coach Jorge Sampaoli has taken less than seven months to BARCELONA: Influential Barcelona midfielder Agassa and the “scarred” goalkeeper is now a major doubt for the make his mark at the Spanish team after steering them to a Sergio Busquets, who was stretchered off in decisive Africa Cup of Nations clash against DR Congo tomorrow. club-record 42 la Liga points at the halfway stage of the Sunday’s 4-0 win at Eibar, looks set to miss at least The 38-year-old was blamed by Togolese fans for his role in the 3- season. Sampaoli’s side came from behind to win 4-3 at the next two games after spraining an ankle. 1 defeat to Morocco last Friday and some took their fury out by Osasuna on Sunday, beating their 39-point haul from “Results on Monday confirm that Busquets has a targeting his home in the capital Lome at the weekend, forcing 19 league games in the 2014-15 campaign under for- sprained external lateral ligament in his right police to intervene. “Agassa is very upset and it has had an mer coach Unai Emery. Emery, now in charge of Paris St ankle,” the Spanish champions said in a state- impact on the morale of the whole team,” said Togo coach Germain, led Sevilla to 76 points that season, the most ment, without indicating how long he would be Claude Le Roy at a press conference ahead of the DR Congo in the 126 year-history of the Andalusian club and out for. Spanish media said he would miss the game in the Gabonese port city of Port-Gentil. “I think it has Sampaoli now has that total in his sights. “It’s going to be next 10-15 days, which would definitely rule him scarred him too much psychologically. His mum has so far found difficult but we will try to do it,” Sampaoli told reporters. out of Thursday’s Copa del Rey clash with Real it difficult to talk about it, it was so stressful and a cause of panic Sevilla’s lone La Liga title came in 1945-46 and they Sociedad and the game with Real Betis on for her. “I really doubt he will be able to play a third match.” Le Roy have been runners-up four times, the last 60 years Sunday. The Spanish international’s ankle added: “The solidarity of the team is such that we will find calmer ago. They have, however, captured nine trophies was trapped under the weight of waters and not let ourselves be affected by a small minority in since 2000, including a record five Europa League Eibar’s Gonzalo Escalante’s studs and what is a country of peace.” Togo, who have one point from two titles and three in a row under Emery. Sampaoli, the Argentine was fortunate to matches, have to win the game against DR Congo-a side former- who guided Chile to Copa America glory in 2015, escape without even being shown ly coached by Le Roy-if they are to stand a chance of going beating a Lionel Messi-led Argentina in the final, is a yellow card. — AFP through to the quarter-finals from Group C. — AFP in his first coaching job in Europe. —Reuters Chen lands five quads to win US figure skating title with ease KANSAS CITY: Nathan Chen stood on the onships, hoping his fellow Americans do top step of the podium and stifled a smile well enough to secure the US three spots at as US Figure Skating president Samuel the Pyeongchang Olympics. Auxier, preparing to drape a gold medal Former champ Max Aaron, the silver around his neck, bowed down before him. medalist a year ago, took himself out of the Indeed, all hail the new king of running at nationals with a poor short pro- American skating. Chen followed a record- gram. He also struggled in the free skate setting short program with a near-flawless and wound up ninth. free skate featuring five quadruple jumps The crowd favorite, Brown showed how Sunday to become the youngest men’s US far he’s come since a stress fracture in his figure skating champion in more than five right fibula with a performance to “The decades. Scent of Love” that showcased his trade- The 17-year-old Chen, performing to mark elegance. He also proved that his “The Polovtsian Dances,” became the first injury is no longer an issue, landing a series skater in the world to land five clean quads of triples that brought stuffed animals rain- in competition. The result was a free skate ing to the ice. score of 212.08 - more than the composite He skated off with a teddy bear just of several rivals - and finished with a 318.47 smaller than a Volvo. “What’s so different is, total that put him well clear of the competi- every single practice that I’ve done here, tion. “That was an amazing performance. I’ve gained more strength. I’m really happy with what I did,” Chen said. I’ve continued to learn and grow,” Brown “Component-wise, I kind of faltered a lit- said. “We knew I wasn’t going to be 100 tle bit. That stuff happens when you’re percent.” Chen followed a few minutes later pushing these secondary elements to the with a performance that not only stamped max. It’s definitely something that I’m look- him as one of the favorites heading into the ing forward to working on improve for world championships in March, but per- worlds.” Hard to imagine things getting a haps next year’s Winter Olympics. whole lot better. Sidelined five months by a hip injury, Chen’s aerial showcase began with a Chen landed four quads during a clean quad lutz-triple toe combination and never short program to score a US record 106.39 slowed down, his only bobble coming on a points. But that merely served as an appe- triple flip-triple toe as his sprightly program tizer to his free skate, where he was coming to an end. added another quad to the four he was By that point, his coach Rafael Arutunian planning to attempt. And he landed them MANCHESTER: Nicola Adams, left, shakes hands with boxing promoter, Frank Warren, during a press announcement in central London, yester- was already shaking his fists in celebration. with such ease that he was hardly breath- day. Two-time Olympic women’s boxing champion Nicola Adams has turned professional. The 34-year-old flyweight from Britain has joined pro- Sixteen-year-old Vincent Zhou missed ing heavily by the time he skated to the moter Frank Warren and will make her professional debut in Manchester on April 8. — AP on his first quad but was clean the rest of center of the ice to soak in a standing ova- the way, even if the youngster lacked some tion. While the performance was stunning, of the polish of his peers. His total of 263.03 his spot on the podium was hardly surpris- earned him the silver medal. ing. Chen has been considered the future Britain’s history-maker Jason Brown skated a smooth, stylish of American skating for years, and his per- routine to move into the bronze medal formance at the Grand Prix Final in France position. One of the threats to Chen’s new last month appeared to validate it. He throne was unable to compete in Kansas topped Olympic and world champion Nicola Adams turns pro City. Reigning champion Adam Rippon was Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan in the free skate warming up for practice two weeks ago and finished the competition second over- when he landed on his left foot and heard a all. He topped his own performance by lit- LONDON: Britain’s double Olympic champion crunch. X-rays and an MRI exam revealed a eral leaps and bounds on Sunday. Nicola Adams will make her professional boxing sprain and a broken bone, which will keep “The US is back on the map, on the debut on April 8, becoming just the latest high- him off the ice for up to three months and world stage,” Chen said, looking at Zhou profile women’s fighter to quit the amateur Swafford claims first effectively end his season. and Brown alongside him on a dais. “With ranks. The 34-year-old was one of the faces of That also means Rippon will be forced to us three, we’ll push the US back to where the London 2012 Games-when she made history PGA win in 93rd start play cheerleader during the world champi- they should be.”— AP as the first woman to win Games boxing gold- but her decision to go pro all but means she will LOS ANGELES: Hudson Swafford finally the Travelers Championship. not pursue a third Games gold at Tokyo 2020, joined the winner’s circle Sunday, firing a He birdied two of his final three holes having retained her title in Rio last year. five-under-par 67 for a one-stroke victory at Sunday to finish at 19-under 269. Of the nine “I want to take women’s boxing to the next the PGA Tour’s CareerBuilder Challenge. players to card a 59 (or better) on tour, level, become a world champion and do great The 29-year-old American birdied three of Hadwin is the fourth who failed to win the things,” the bubbly flyweight said yesterday, his last four holes to claim his maiden USPGA event.