23 Established 1961 Sports Tuesday, February 27, 2018 PSG ease to 3-0 victory over arch-rivals Marseille Lyon held 1-1 at home after late St Etienne goal PARIS: Paris St Germain continued their stroll towards LEAGUE POSITIONS the French title with a 3-0 home win against bitter Sunday’s result left Marseille in third on 55 points, rivals Olympique de Marseille on Sunday but forward two behind second-placed Monaco who were held to a Neymar left the field on a stretcher late in the game as 3-3 draw at Toulouse on Saturday. Olympique Lyonnais they extended their Ligue 1 lead to 14 points. were denied their first Ligue 1 win in over a month Kylian Mbappe, a Rolando own goal and Edinson when St Etienne’s Mathieu Debuchy scored a last-gasp Cavani put the capital side on 71 points from 27 games goal to secure a 1-1 away draw in France’s hottest der- after a clinical performance at the Parc des Princes in by. In Paris, Mbappe scored his first league goal since an ill-tempered game in which the hosts got six yellow last month when he dribbled past Rolando and found cards and the visitors five. the back of the net with a low cross-shot in the 10th PSG finished with 10 minute. Rolando had men after Neymar was more trouble in the 28th carried off with a sus- as he deflected Neymar’s pected ankle injury eight attempt into his own minutes from time after Neymar carried goal. coach Unai Emery had already made his three off with NEYMAR ASSISTS replacements. “We Marseille failed to showed that it’s a very suspected threaten and PSG’s special match for us and Ligue 1 top scorer we got an excellent ankle injury Cavani added a third for result,” Emery said. “The his 24th goal of the sea- injury to Neymar was son with a shot on the the only negative. We turn from Neymar’s hope it’s nothing serious, but we have to wait for further cross 11 minutes into the second half. It was the 13th medical exams.” time Neymar had set up a goal in Ligue 1 this season, The coach said initial tests showed it was a twisted beating his previous best of 12 assists in a league sea- ankle but he added further exams on Monday would son with Barcelona in 2015-16. reveal if there was more serious damage. The Paris club OM have not won in Ligue 1 at the Parc des Princes PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain’s Brazilian forward Neymar Jr (C) vies with Marseille’s French midfielder Morgan will now sweat over his availability for the March 6 since Qatar Sports Investments took charge of the Paris Sanson (L) and Marseille’s Japanese defender Hiroki Sakai during the French L1 football match between Champions League game with Real Madrid. club in 2011. In Lyon, French international Debuchy Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Marseille (OM) at the Parc des Princes in Paris on Sunday. — AFP PSG lost the first leg of the last 16 tie 3-1 in Spain on struck one minute into stoppage time to cancel out Feb 14 but Emery was optimistic his world-record sign- Mariano Diaz’s first-half opener. ing would be fit for the return leg. “We must be patient The win left Lyon, who are now on a five-match win- when Diaz volleyed home from close range but they ran Debuchy found the back of the net when he but if I had to say something today then I would say less streak, in fourth place with 50 points with St out of steam and St Etienne, without a shot on target in latched onto Remi Cabella’s cross to secure a point yes, he will play.” Etienne 12th on 34 points. Lyon scored after 20 minutes the first half, came back into the game. for the visitors. — Reuters Can Arsenal save Iraq, Saudi face season after League off in bout of Cup final defeat? football diplomacy LONDON: Arsenal’s season is in danger of imploding after a chastening League Cup final demolition at the hands BAGHDAD: Iraq is hosting a football international Premier League leaders Manchester City raised fresh against Saudi Arabia tomorrow for the first time in questions about the future of manager Arsene Wenger. almost four decades, in a friendly encounter with high The Gunners, who lost 3-0 to Pep Guardiola’s high-flying diplomatic and political stakes. With its match in the team, now find themselves 10 points adrift of their north southern city of Basra against the Saudis who have London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, who occupy the coveted qualified for the 2018 World Cup finals in Russia, Iraq fourth spot in the Premier League table. Already out of the aims to strengthen its case for FIFA to lift its ban on FA Cup, the Europa League could offer salvation-and a home competitive internationals. Champions League spot-but Italian giants AC Milan stand The country has not played full internationals on between Wenger’s team and a place in the quarter-finals. home turf ever since its 1990 invasion of Kuwait that The Arsenal boss, who signed a new two-year contract sparked an international embargo. The ban, covering extension last year, said he would have to prioritise the all but local matches, stayed in place after the US-led next game-against Manchester City in the league on invasion of 2003 that toppled dictator Saddam Thursday-before he could focus on the Europa League. Hussein. It was briefly lifted in 2012, but a power out- “We will of course to take the Europa League very age during an Iraq-Jordan match in the Iraqi Kurdish seriously,” he said. “But we have as well to win big games capital Arbil led world football’s governing body because if you want to go far in the Europa League you promptly to reinstate it. Iraq in December declared have to win big games.” victory over the Islamic State jihadist group following Former Arsenal striker Thierry Henry said the manner of WEMBLEY: Manchester City’s Belgian defender Vincent Kompany lifts the trophy as Manchester City players Arsenal’s capitulation at Wembley was shocking. “You can a three-year battle, and FIFA finally relaxed the ban, celebrate their victory in the English League Cup final football match between Manchester City and Arsenal lose games, you can lose finals,” he said on Sky Sports on allowing international friendlies at stadiums in Arbil, at Wembley stadium in north London on Sunday. — AFP Basra and the shrine city of Karbala. For Saudi Arabia, Monday “I lost finals but it’s how you lose them. When you the match is part of a slow process of boosting diplo- look at the two first goals yesterday, they were goals that matic and economic ties with post-Saddam Iraq, while you can avoid. It wasn’t that difficult to avoid.” rible feeling,” he wrote on Skysports.com. Mesut Ozil was also handed the most lucrative contract at the same time countering the influence in the coun- “Man City were not that great on the day but Arsenal “But I saw things out on that pitch from Arsenal. I actu- in the club’s history to prevent the German World Cup try of its regional rival Iran. still couldn’t do anything about it and so it’s a very difficult ally called it in the lead up to the third goal, where they winner following Alexis Sanchez out of the club in January. one,” he added. “Arsene never won this one before. I’m were walking back, and walking up, and walking towards Things are also changing behind the scenes, with a new POLITICAL FOOTBALL sure the team and him went there with massive expecta- the ball. You do not walk on a football pitch, that’s the one chief scout arriving from Dortmund, Sven Mislintat, and “Politics is present in every domain, and Saudi tions of winning it. “The league is not going so well. It thing you don’t do.” Raul Sanllehi appointed head of football relations, sug- Arabia has major political weight,” Sports and Youth would have been amazing to win the Carabao (League) “I’m finding it difficult to take because it’s a wonderful gesting Wenger’s grip on power may be weakening. Minister Abdulhussein Abttan told AFP in an inter- Cup and then hopefully backing that up with winning the football club with a great history and tradition, but at the Daily Telegraph chief football writer Henry Winter sug- view. “I hope that this match will inspire other national Europa League. That’s what I would have called a great moment they’re in decline in terms of their performance gested time is up for Wenger. “Arsenal are on the road to teams to visit Iraq, which will help support our case season. That’s what Man United did last year.” levels and their standards,” he added. nowhere under Arsene Wenger, a situation that has been for a total lifting of FIFA’s ban on matches in our sta- Former Manchester United and England defender Gary The problems are mounting for Arsenal at a time when sadly apparent for four to five seasons but now all but the diums,” he said, ahead of a decision the sport’s gov- Neville was stinging in his criticism of the Arsenal players, the famously parsimonious club have finally loosened the overly sentimental can see it,” he wrote.