Established 1961 15 Sports Tuesday, March 20, 2018 Depay grabs Lyon dramatic win over top-three rivals Marseille Both sides clashed after the final whistle PARIS: Memphis Depay’s last-gasp winner clinched It was Rudi Garcia’s hosts who struck the first blow, Lyon a thrilling 3-2 victory at Marseille on Sunday that though, as Rami nodded a Payet free-kick back across kept them firmly in the hunt for Champions League the area for his centre-back partner Rolando to turn qualification. Kostas Mitroglou looked to have the ball in through the legs of Lopes. Mandanda made snatched Marseille a vital point with an 84th-minute a magnificent save to tip Maxwel Cornet’s curling effort equaliser to make it 2-2, but Depay showed great onto the post, but Lyon equalised in fortuitous circum- bravery to nod home in stances shortly after- the final minute of nor- wards. Traore complete- mal time. ly miskicked with the Bruno Genesio’s Lyon goal gaping, but the ball are now just two points ricocheted off Rami and adrift of their opponents Marseille looped past a stranded in the race for the third Mandanda. It took Lyon and final Champions dominated less than seven minutes League spot, after fol- of the second period to lowing a six-game win- take a deserved lead, as less run with back-to- possession Traore picked out Aouar back victories. Marseille on the edge of the area had forged ahead in the and the 19-year-old mid- 31st minute through fielder curled low into Portuguese defender the corner to score his Rolando, but Lyon levelled as Adil Rami put through his fourth league goal of the season. own net before Houssem Aouar scored early in the sec- A draw would have been an excellent result for ond period. Marseille with a five-point lead to defend, but Lyon Both sides clashed after the final whistle, with fights continued to outplay their hosts and Mandanda had to also breaking out in the tunnel as Marseille frustrations show all of his agility to get a vital hand on Traore’s boiled over. Both teams looked dangerous going for- backheeled effort. Marseille managed to get a grip on ward early on, with Lyon forward Mariano Diaz seeing proceedings and some terrible defending from the an effort spin narrowly wide of the far post, before vis- away side gifted Mitroglou the equaliser as Jeremy iting goalkeeper denied Dimitri Payet with a sprawling Morel’s sliced clearance dropped for the Greek striker save. Marseille dominated possession, but Lyon always to head home. But former Manchester United winger looked a threat on the counter-attack and Steve Depay, who came on as a second-half substitute, leapt MARSEILLE: Marseille and Lyon footballers argue at the end of the French L1 football match between Marseille and Mandanda had to get down quickly to push away highest to direct Diaz’s flick-on header into the far cor- Lyon at The Velodrome Stadium in Marseille, southern France on Sunday. —AFP Bertrand Traore’s low drive. ner and spark wild Lyon celebrations. — AFP Albiol keeps Napoli’s title Amazing Salah hopes burning scales new ROME: Spanish defender Raul Albiol headed in the winner heights with as a 1-0 victory over Genoa on Sunday kept Napoli’s Serie A title hopes alive, closing the gap on leaders Juventus to two points. Juventus’ march towards a seventh consecu- four-goal salvo tive Italian title was stalled on Saturday by a goalless draw at struggling SPAL. And Napoli seized the opportunity to revive their bid PARIS: An extraordinary season for Liverpool for a first league crown since 1990, after a 4-2 defeat by star Mohamed Salah reached a new high at the Roma and a goalless draw at Inter Milan in their last two weekend when he scored four goals against games had put Juve in control. Watford to once again be the star African per- Maurizio Sarri’s side were pushed hard, with Lorenzo former in Europe. Insigne and Dries Mertens both hitting the woodwork The 25-year-old striker raised his season goal before Albiol broke through after 72 minutes at the Stadio tally to 36 in all competitions after becoming the San Paolo. “This was an important game, we were coming first Egyptian to score a Premier League hat- back from two matches without a win,” said Napoli coach Sarri. “At this stage last season, Juventus had basically trick as the Reds triumphed 5-0 at Anfield. It is already won the title, so this means we are causing them a far cry from his time with Swiss club Basel, real problems. “This is already the second-best campaign where his repeated missed scoring opportunities in Napoli’s history in terms of points, so we’ll keep push- led the media to label him “chance waster”. ing.” Sarri added that the international break had come at just the right time for tired Napoli captain Marek Hamsik, SAN PAOLO: Genoa’s Italian goalkeeper Mattia Perin dives after Napoli’s Belgian striker Dries Mertens stet ENGLAND who limped off with a thigh injury after 20 minutes. Behind the ball during the Italian Serie A football match SSC Napoli vs Genoa CFC on Sunday at the San Paolo MOHAMED SALAH (Liverpool) the leading pair in the battle for Champions League foot- Stadium.—AFP The winger’s remarkable debut season after ball next season, Roma consolidated third place — 14 joining Liverpool from Roma continued with points behind Napoli-with a 2-0 win over Crotone. goals in the fourth, 43rd, 77th and 85th minutes. and then I just kept going,” said Icardi. But Lazio-who to condemn Crotone to their third loss in four matches. Liverpool are up to third thanks to Salah’s mas- qualified for the Europa League quarter-finals in midweek ICARDI BRINGS UP TON terclass and he said: “I have to thank everyone, Inter Milan moved fourth-four points beind Roma-fol- — showed signs of fatigue. AC MILAN BOUNCE BACK lowing a 5-0 rout of Sampdoria with captain Mauro Icardi Simone Verdi scored after just three minutes for AC Milan extended their unbeaten league run to 10 but mainly my team-mates. Without them I scoring four times to break through the 100-goal mark in Bologna, but Lucas Leiva earned a point for Lazio with his games with a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Chievo in couldn’t have reached this number.” Serie A. Inter’s win pushed Lazio outside the Champions second goal in four days but his first in league football the San Siro to consolidate sixth position-five points off League places into fifth, after the Romans were held 1-1 at since scoring for Liverpool in May 2009. “We have many the Champions League spots. After their Europa League ERIC MAXIM CHOUPO-MOTING (Stoke) home by Bologna. Argentinian international Icardi, who fixtures, this was the last in a long run and now we’ll have exit to Arsenal, Gennaro Gattuso’s side were in battling The Cameroon midfielder came off the bench had been sidelined for a month with injury, broke the cen- some rest over the break for international duty,” said Lazio mood opening their account after ten minutes when Hakan to score against Everton, but couldn’t stop his tury after scoring his first goals since January. His four- coach Simone Inzaghi. In Calabria, Roma claimed a six win Calhanoglu finished off a Franck Kessie cross. struggling team suffering a damaging 2-1 defeat. goal haul included three in 14 minutes against his former in seven games. Stephan El Shaarawy latched onto an But Chievo pulled ahead with two quick fire goals from Choupo-Moting was sent on in the 72nd minute club. Icardi now has 103 goals in Serie A — 93 with Inter Aleksandar Kolarov cross to open the scoring after 39 min- Mariusz Stepinski and Roberto Inglese just after the half- with Stoke trailing 1-0. He made an immediate and ten for Sampdoria. “I really wanted to reach 100 goals utes with Radja Nainggolan sealing the win on 70 minutes hour mark. —AFP impact, scoring in the 77th minute with a close- range finish from a cross. But the 28-year-old’s fifth goal of the season was followed by a late ly purchased the port of Thessaloniki, the gateway to the Everton winner that leaves Stoke second last in Thessaloniki, Balkans, and he is in the process of opening a TV station. the Premier League. CHALLENGING ATHENS WILFRIED ZAHA (Crystal Palace) club owner Savvidis, whose ancestors were Black Sea Greeks who The Ivory Coast winger avoided another faced oppression in Turkey, and later in the Soviet Union, injury in Palace’s crucial 2-0 win at relegation was rewarded for his investments with honorary Greek cit- rivals Huddersfield. Zaha had been out since ear- who invaded izenship by the previous conservative administration. To ly February with a knee injury, but returned to many in the north, he is the only man who can challenge help give Palace’s survival hopes a major boost pitch is king the power of Athens and end a three-decade football as they won for the first time in over two months. drought for clubs from outside the capital. “(Athenians) are Zaha had missed Palace’s previous four games, bothered because someone dares to challenge the status quo,” says Christos Nikolaidis, a local journalist. “Savvidis which all ended in defeats. THESSALONIKI: A Greek-Russian businessman of hum- is the only investor left in Greece with the strength to hit ble origins, PAOK FC owner Ivan Savvidis has put Greek back at this rotten structure.