WEDNESDAY, MAY 6, 2015 SPORTS Sevilla upbeat ahead of visit to Fiorentina BARCELONA: Sevilla’s 34-match unbeaten home run may be over but the attacking flair they showed against Real Madrid leaves them full of confidence ahead of their Europa League semi-final against Fiorentina tomorrow. The Andalusian side should be buoyed by a performance that demonstrated their free-flowing football, spearheaded by 25- goal hit-man Carlos Bacca who has been tor- menting defences across Europe all season. The Europa League holders lie fifth in La Liga and now turn their attention to the semi-final first leg against Fiorentina. Sevilla have clicked during the second BRAZIL: The coach of the Brazilian national football team, Dunga, walks to take a half of the season and are playing an impor- seat before announcing the 23-player roster for the upcoming Copa America tourna- tant part in the La Liga title race where they ment to be held in Chile. —AFP are only the second team to take points off leaders Barcelona in 28 games. They held Barca to a 2-2 draw last month while Real just hung on for a 3-2 victory on Injured Oscar ruled Saturday in a game where the visitors scored twice when Grzegorz Krychowiak out of Copa America was off the pitch for treatment. With wingers of the calibre of Jose RIO DE JANEIRO: A training-ground scoring 18 goals and conceding just two. Antonio Reyes, Aleix Vidal and Vitolo they injury has ruled Chelsea midfielder Oscar “What we want in the national team is have been able to run ragged the tightest of out of Brazil’s squad for next month’s players with personality, initiative, per- defences and they have the strength in Copa America in Chile, coach Dunga said sonality after all that happened in the depth to compete in Europe and fight for a yesterday. World Cup, players looking for the Champions League place in La Liga. “Oscar got an injury in his last training essence of Brazilian football, dribbles and “The team is physically and mentally session with Chelsea, we spoke with creativity,” Dunga said. strong and the defeat (against Real) won’t (Chelsea manager Jose) Mourinho and “We must look for that incessantly, we affect us at all, it will make us stronger as we the doctor at Chelsea and his recupera- must always look to win.” Brazil kick off showed we were able to take the game to tion will take time and he won’t be at his their Copa America campaign against one of the best sides, if not the best, in the best during the Copa America,” Dunga Peru on June 14 before facing Colombia world,” Bacca told reporters. told reporters. and Venezuela. “We feel strong and while it is disappoint- “After the Copa America we have the They will play pre-tournament friend- ing that the record has come to an end, we World Cup qualifiers, and we thought it lies against Mexico in Sao Paulo on June knew it would at some point. The most best for him to be ready for the quali- 7 and face Honduras three days later in important thing is the way we played and fiers.” Former Real Madrid and Porto Alegre. that we remained faithful to our style of Manchester City striker Robinho was football.” Fiorentina beat lowly Cesena on included after a fine start to the season Brazil Squad: Sunday having lost their previous four Serie with Santos. Jefferson (Botafogo), Marcelo Grohe A games. “This win gives us belief and also “He is much more experienced obvi- (Gremio), Diego Alves (Valencia) David puts us back in fifth (in Serie A),” coach ously, he knows his role in the national Luiz (Paris St. Germain), Marquinhos Vincenzo Montella told reporters. “Now we side,” Dunga said. “He has great skill and (Paris St Germain), Thiago Silva (Paris St are only thinking of Sevilla who are a very solid team defensively and who know how has shown that at Santos and he has Germain), Miranda (Atletico Madrid), SPAIN: Sevilla’s French forward Kevin Gameiro reacts in this file photo. —AFP more responsibility this time to pass on Filipe Luis (Chelsea), Danilo (Porto), to attack.” —Reuters that experience to the younger players.” Fabino (Monaco), Marcelo (Real Madrid) Liverpool’s 22-year old Philippe Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg), Elias Coutinho was included for his first major (Corinthians), Casemiro (Porto), tournament and there were also places Fernandinho (Manchester City), Philippe for Al-Ahli’s Everton Ribeiro, who led Coutinho (Liverpool), Willian (Chelsea) Cruzeiro to first division titles in 2013 and Everton Ribeiro (Al-Ahli), Neymar 2014, and Diego Tardelli, who plays for (Barcelona), Firmino (Hoffenheim), Shandong Luneng in China. Paris St Douglas Costa (Shakhtar), Diego Tardelli Germain’s defensive trio of David Luiz, (Shandong), Robinho (Santos). —Reuters Marquinhos and Thiago Silva were all included. Dunga, who won the Copa America in Venezuela in 2007, is expecting his play- Matches on TV ers to help Brazil recover prestige after a disastrous World Cup. (Local Timings) The captain of the 1994 World Cup- winning side took over as coach in July, UEFA Champions League days after Brazil’s humiliating 7-1 defeat by Germany in the World Cup semi-final. Barcelona v Bayern Munich 21:45 He has since turned their fortunes beIN SPORTS 1 HD around, winning all eight games, while Mabrouk to coach African giants Ahly JOHANNESBURG: Record eight-time Ghanaians Hearts of Oak and Etoile Sahel African champions Al Ahly named Egyptian facing Moroccans Raja Casablanca. Fathi Mabrouk as coach yesterday after fir- Ahly are the title-holders having pipped ing Spaniard Juan Carlos Garrido. Ivorians Sewe San Pedro on away goals in Mabrouk had a short spell as caretaker the two-leg final after a 2-2 aggregate coach last year before Garrido was placed deadlock. in charge of the Cairo Red Devils. But failure Four other former CAF Champions to qualify for the CAF Champions League League winners, Ivorians ASEC Mimosas, group stage and a faltering domestic title Congolese V Club, South Africans Orlando campaign cost the Spaniard his job. Pirates and Egyptians Zamalek, are fea- Mabrouk has been part of the Ahly tured in the draw. coaching set-up for several seasons and ASEC play Tunisians CS Sfaxien, V Club debuts today when Ahly play Al Nasr in the meet Malians Stade Malien, Pirates face national championship. Guineans Kaloum and Zamalek tackle His challenges include successfully Congolese Sanga Balende. defending the CAF Confederation Cup, The only tie not involving former cham- starting with a play-off against Tunisians pions pits AC Leopards from Congo Club Africain this month. On the domestic Brazzaville against Nigerians Warri Wolves. front, Mabrouk must try and close a 11- Although the second-tier African competi- point gap between third-place Ahly and tion, the Confederation Cup line-up is league leaders and bitter rivals Zamalek. much stronger this season than the more ITALY: Napoli’s forward Gonzalo Higuain celebrates after scoring in this file photo. —AFP Meanwhile, three ties between former lucrative and prestigious CAF Champions African champions highlighted the CAF League. Confederation Cup play-offs draw made The Champions League groups field yesterday in Cairo. includes just two teams who have con- Napoli fans don’t know Tunisian clubs are involved in all the quered the continent, defending champi- match-ups with Club Africain playing ons Algerians Entente Setif and Congolese Egyptians Al Ahly, Esperance meeting TP Mazembe. —AFP whether to laugh or cry TURIN: Napoli’s season has already been they could also reach by winning the They could have challenged for the title written off as a failure by critics, but Rafael Europa League. had they not developed a habit of dropping Benitez’s side could still land only their sec- There is even talk of Benitez renewing his points at home to teams from the lower half ond European title and qualify for the contract which expires at the end of the of the table. Champions League. season and Napoli fans do not know Dnipro are second in the Ukrainian Napoli host Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk in the whether to laugh or cry at their team’s league, six points behind leaders Dynamo first leg of their Europa League semi-final unpredictability. Kiev and one ahead of Shakhtar Donetsk, with the team still maintaining a media They have scored seven goals in their last and coach Myron Markevich has admitted blackout on the orders of outspoken presi- two home Serie A games, sweeping aside they are struggling to compete on two dent Aurelio Di Laurentiis. Sampdoria and AC Milan, yet in between fronts. “Surely, this game in Naples is very The blackout was imposed a month ago were thrashed 4-2 at Empoli. important for us. But we also have to fight after Napoli, having dropped to sixth in They also thumped VfL Wolfsburg 6-3 on in domestic championship. It is not going to Serie A following five matches without a aggregate in the Europa League quarter- be easy. We lack resources,” he said. win, were knocked out of the Coppa Italia at final, including a 4-1 win in Germany, as Markevich can be a tough master and home by Lazio. they continued their best European cam- was not impressed after his team won 3-0 at Their season appeared to be all but over paign since the Diego Maradona-inspired Chernomorets in their last league game. “It and it was not even clear whether Benitez side who won the UEFA Cup in 1989. is not acceptable to play like we did in the would make it to the end of the campaign.