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* Dempsey scores day after attending family wedding

* Americans to play Panama in Wednesday’s semi-final (Corrects clarifying this match was a quarter-final in para 6 and deleting reference to Landon Donovan as U.S. captain)

WASHINGTON, June 19 (Reuters) - The United States scored twice in the second half to beat a 10-man Jamaica squad 2-0 on Sunday and advance to the CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals.

Jermaine Jones broke the deadlock with his first goal for his country four minutes into the second half after his shot took a deflection off Jamaican defender Jermaine Taylor, giving goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts no chance of making the save.

“I thought we played a good game today,” U.S. coach Bob Bradley said. “It took a while to get the goal and the second goal, but certainly as far as establishing our game today I thought we did an excellent job.”

Jamaica, which did not concede a goal in the pool stages, were reduced to 10-men when Taylor was red-carded for tripping Jones as he was bearing down on goal.

American striker Clint Dempsey, who rejoined the team on Sunday after missing three days to attend his sister’s wedding in Texas, put the result beyond doubt in the 80th minute, side-stepping an advancing Ricketts and tapping the ball into an open net after a low cross from Juan Agudelo.

Landon Donovan, who also missed three days of training to attend his sister’s wedding in California, started the game on the bench.

“There are times that players come to you with personal requests,” Bradley said. “Ultimately, after speaking at different points with Clint and Landon, I knew how important both of these days were for them. You always try to do what’s best for the team and you make tough decisions.”

The U.S. have reached the semi-finals in each of the last six editions of the tournament for North and Central America and Caribbean teams and play Panama on Wednesday in a repeat of the 2005 final, which the Americans won on penalties.

Panama, who beat the U.S. in the group stage, sealed their place the hard way, scoring in the 90th minute of regular time to tie El Salvador 1-1 before winning 5-3 on penalties.

Mexico and Honduras will play in the tournament’s other semi-final.

The winner of the tournament will represent North and Central America and the Caribbean at the 2013 Confederations Cup in Brazil.

“As the tournament goes on, you start to build team unity. It doesn’t happen right away,” said Donovan. “We’re starting to play as a team. Tonight was a really good performance.”

(Reporting by Julian Linden in New York; Editing by Frank Pingue; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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Labels: beats, CONCACAF, Jamaica, reach, Reuters, semis

WEMBLEY, England (AP)—Obafemi Martins scored in 89th minute winner after a blunder by goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and Laurent Koscielny, giving Birmingham a 2-1 victory over Arsenal in the League Cup final for its first trophy since 1963.

Szczesny and Koscielny both went to stop Nikola Zigic’s header in the penalty area and the ball landed at the feet of Martin, who slid it into the net.

“I think it was my second touch,” said Martins, who joined Birmingham on a six-month loan from the Russian club Rubin Kazan last month. “I think this is the easiest goal I’ve ever scored in my career.”

Zigic, at 6-foot-8 the Premier League’s tallest player, had put Birmingham in front with a header in the 28th minute. Robin van Persie of Arsenal evened it 11 minutes later with a volley.

Birmingham won the 1963 League Cup final. Its victory Sunday left Arsenal searching for its first trophy since the 2005 FA Cup.

Birmingham is battling relegation from the Premier League, two points above the drop zone. Arsenal is second behind Manchester United.

“It’s an achievement when you consider who we were up against,” Birmingham manager Alex McLeish said. “We weren’t given a prayer by the pundits and the bookies but we believed today. It was a titanic performance by the players.”

Arsenal has lost three finals since 2005. That lack of success, manager Arsene Wenger said before the match, had placed “a weight on the team.” Wenger hoped the final would show how far his club has matured, but Arsenal was sluggish and struggled to impose itself.

Labels: Arsenal, beats, Birmingham, final, league

MEXICO CITY (AP)—Strikes from Hector Mancilla, Damian Alvarez and Carlos Ochoa gave UANL Tigres a 3-0 home win against Puebla on Saturday to lift the Monterrey club to an overnight lead in the Mexican Clausura championship.

Mancilla scored in the 25th minute after a pass from Alvarez, who added the second in the 43rd. Substitute Ochoa sealed the win with an 87th-minute goal.

The win moved Tigres to 17 points from eight matches, two ahead of UNAM Pumas in the general standings. Pumas hosts Estudiantes Tecos on Sunday.

Also Saturday, Chiapas stemmed a five-game losing streak with a 1-0 win against Guadalajara, while Cruz Azul rallied to draw 1-1 at Queretaro and Atlas beat defending champion Monterrey 1-0. Pachuca and San Luis drew 0-0.

In Mexico, the league champion is decided by playoffs at the end of each half-season tournament. The 18 teams are split into three groups and play each other once. The top two in each group reach the playoffs, with the two best clubs in the general table not to qualify from the groups also advancing

In Monterrey, Tigres took a stranglehold on the game against Puebla with first-half strikes from Mancilla and Alvarez.

The two forwards combined for the first goal, with Mancilla controlling a pass in the area from Alvarez to score, before Alvarez added the second just before half time with a curling shot from the edge of the area.

Ochoa completed the scoring, rounding goalkeeper Alexandro Alvarez and rolling into the net from a tight angle for the third just before the final whistle.

Tigres has a clear lead of the Clausura tournament’s Group 1, sitting seven points ahead of a clutch of four clubs on 10. Puebla has seven points in group 3.

In Chiapas, Daniel Frias hit the winning goal from a pass by Edgar Andrade in the eighth minute to give Jaguars a welcome 1-0 home win against Chivas of Guadalajara following a patch of poor form.

Jaguars held on to the win despite finishing with 10 men following a red card for Antonio Salazar in the 81st.

The result gave Chiapas seven points in Group 3, with Guadalajara stuck on 10 points behind Tigres in Group 1.

Elsewhere, Cruz Azul maintained second place in Group 2 after Isaac Romo struck an equalizer in the 33rd minute at Queretaro.

Isaac Acuna had given the home side the lead in the seventh minute, but Raul Ferro was sent off in the 13th to give Cruz Azul a man extra.

Queretaro was reduced to nine men in the 51st when Gabino Velasco was also shown a red card, but the remaining players defended the point to move to eight points in Group 3.

Meanwhile, Monterrey’s stuttering title defense continued with a 1-0 loss at Atlas. Gerardo Espinoza scored the decisive goal with a penalty in first-half stoppage time after goalkeeper Jonathan Orozco botched a clearance and fouled Hebert Alferez in the box.

Monterrey’s hopes of a second-half comeback were hampered by Osvaldo Martinez’ red card in the 63rd. Defeat left the club among those on 10 points in Group 1.

The win put Atlas atop Group 2 on 13 points, ahead of San Luis on goal difference.

On Friday, Necaxa had a 1-0 home win against Santos.

Fixtures continue Sunday, with Morelia vs. Atlante, Pumas vs. Estudiantes and America vs. Toluca.

Labels: beats, Clausura, Puebla, table, Tigres

LONDON (AP)—Mario Gomez’s last-minute goal earned Bayern Munich a 1-0 victory at defending champion Inter Milan and three-time champion Manchester United was held 0-0 at Marseille in first-leg matches in the last 16 of the Champions League on Wednesday.

Gomez hooked the loose ball into an empty net after goalkeeper Julio Cesar had failed to hold winger Arjen Robben’s shot, giving the German side a measure of revenge for its 2-0 loss to Inter in the 2010 final in Madrid.

“I am very happy with our performance,” Bayern coach Louis van Gaal said. “Inter played very well. It could have been a different result, but we deserved to win after the way we played in the second half.”

In a game of few chances at the Stade Velodrome, Marseille’s Steve Mandanda was the busier of the two goalkeepers, keeping out shots by United midfielders Darren Fletcher and Nani.

“It was very important not to concede in the first game and we did it,” Marseille coach Didier Deschamps said.

The second legs are played on March 15, with Bayern and United now favorites to go through to the quarterfinals.

Inter, which is third in Serie A but has been showing improved form under new coach Leonardo, will count itself unlucky to be going into the second leg behind.

“There is some bitterness that we conceded the goal at the point of the game when we did,” Leonardo said.

Bayern goalkeeper Thomas Kraft defied the hosts on a number of occasions, while Inter was denied what looked like a clear penalty when the lively Samuel Eto’o appeared to be brought down by Anatoliy Tymoshchuk in the box early on.

Later in the first half, Esteban Cambiasso’s shot from close range was blocked by Kraft, who then came to Bayern’s rescue to push away a shot by Eto’o.

Franck Ribery headed an effort onto the bar at the other end and fellow winger Robben picked out Thomas Mueller in the box shortly after halftime, but the Germany midfielder glanced a header wide.

Eto’o and Cambiasso then wasted decent chances one after the other before Gomez’s dramatic winner, allowing the Germany international to join Eto’o and Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka as the leading scorers in the Champions League this season with seven each.

“I don’t think we need to make major changes before we go to Munich,” Leonardo said.

Man United manager Alex Ferguson rued his side’s inability to score an away goal in France, even though Marseille struggled to create many chances of its own at home against the Premier League leaders.

“A goal away from home is always important—we didn’t do that, that’s a disappointment for me,” Ferguson said. “At this stage of the competition, away goals count. But you have to say that Manchester United at home, we have a good chance.”

Mandanda had to react late to keep out Fletcher’s low shot in the first real chance of the match, before England striker Wayne Rooney—who played in a withdrawn role on the left side of the visitors’ attack—was denied by a last-gasp tackle from Marseille center half Souleymane Diawara.

Brandao, Marseille’s lone striker, had a weak header saved at the start of the second half and then just failed to get a touch on Andre Ayew’s drive across the face of goal.

United’s last opportunity fell to Nani, but Mandanda rushed off his line with five minutes left to dive quickly at the Portugal winger’s feet.

“I’m proud of what my players did tonight because they rose to the challenge,” Deschamps said. “It will be a different story in three weeks at Old Trafford, but we will have to go there without fear.”

Labels: Bayern, beats, Inter, MarseilleUnited

BERLIN (AP)—Lucas Barrios scored one goal and was involved in the other Saturday as Bundesliga leader Borussia Dortmund won 2-0 at home against St. Pauli.

St. Pauli could only muster one attack before Dortmund deservedly took the lead in the 39th minute.

Barrios controlled Nuri Sahin’s cross with his left before turning and slotting the ball with his weaker right past goalkeeper Thomas Kessler.

St. Pauli defender Ralph Gunesch was unlucky to knock a cross from Barrios into his own net in the 49th.

“It was a deserved win,” Dortmund defender Marcel Schmelzer said. “I’m happy we could finally win in front of our fans again. We go week by week and will see what comes out of it at the end.”

Mario Gomez’s 18th goal of the season helped Bayern Munich to a 3-1 win at Mainz that lifted the team into provisional second place.

Germany’s top scorer got Bayern’s third goal in the 77th minute, following goals from Bastian Schweinsteiger and Thomas Mueller.

Sami Allagui scored a consolation for Mainz in the 84th, when he powered a header past substitute keeper Joerg Butt.

Borussia Dortmund is 13 points ahead of Bayern and Bayer Leverkusen, which plays Stuttgart at home on Sunday.

Poor defending gifted Bastian Schweinsteiger his third goal of the season in the ninth minute after build-up play from Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben. Ribery’s cross was headed back into the area by the Dutchman, and Schweinsteiger headed past Heinz Mueller with ease.

Mainz forward Andre Schuerrle’s attempted lob over goalkeeper Thomas Kraft was just wide of the far post in the 27th, and Kraft stood up well to a free kick from the same player minutes later.

Heinz Mueller’s quick reflexes denied Schweinsteiger from close range after the break, following a free kick from Robben.

Thomas Mueller got the better of his namesake in the 50th, when he stretched to reach Robben’s hopeful ball forward to prod to the right of the goalkeeper.

He provided the assist for Mario Gomez to knock it in from close range, before Allagui’s late consolation goal.

Hamburger SV won 4-0 against Werder Bremen, with two goals from Jose Paolo Guerrero. Freiburg beat Wolfsburg 2-1, Hannover beat Kaiserslautern 3-0, and Hoffenheim and Cologne drew 1-1.

Dortmund has 13 more points than Bayer Leverkusen, which plays Stuttgart at home on Sunday, and 16 more than Bayern Munich, which can cut the gap and reclaim third place from Hannover with a win at Mainz in Saturday’s late game.

Some 7,600 St. Pauli fans made the trip from Hamburg, to see Dortmund end their side’s unbeaten start to 2011.

Dortmund had 14 shots on goal in the first half, compared to one from the visitors.

Roman Weidenfeller denied Fin Bartels from pulling a goal back for St. Pauli with half an hour remaining, after some neat interplay between Charles Takyi and Marius Ebbers, and Kevin Grosskreutz missed a great chance at the other end when he scuffed his shot narrowly wide.

“It was an abominable display; disastrous, dismal,” St. Pauli coach Holger Stanislawski said. “There were too many total failures.”

Mladen Petric gave Hamburger SV the lead in the 94th Northern Derby to Werder Bremen in the 42nd, volleying a cross from Jonathan Pitroipa past goalkeeper Sebastian Mielitz.

Per Mertesacker was at fault for Hamburg’s second in the 64th, when Petric dispossessed the defender in front of the penalty area before feeding Guerrero for a simple tap-in.

Guerrero’s second in the 79th compounded the misery for Werder coach Thomas Schaaf, and Aenis Ben-Hatira completed the rout in the 87th.

“Unfortunately we were unable to build on what we showed in the first half. Then the goal came and we had to come from behind again. If you then concede a second goal, the belief suffers a bit, your self-confidence is not flowing. We have to keep working on it,” said Schaaf.

Bremen remains in 14th, one point above the relegation playoff place.

Papiss Demba Cisse scored the winner as Freiburg came from behind to beat Wolfsburg.

Patrick Helmes opened the scoring with scored his first goal for Wolfsburg in the 28th, coolly lifting the ball over Oliver Baumann.

Substitute Stefan Reisinger was on for less than two minutes before he equalized after receiving a pass from Anton Putsila. Wolfsburg protested as Putsila clearly controlled the ball with his hand, but referee Robert Hartmann allowed the goal to stand.

Cisse showed his class in the 70th, when—surrounded by three Wolfsburg defenders—he controlled the ball twice in the air before blasting past Marwin Hitz for his 16th of the season.

Brazilian midfielder Cicero hit the crossbar for Wolfsburg with a header late in the game.

Wolfsburg is only ahead of Kaiserslautern in the relegation play off on goal difference.

“I’m sure we can change the situation,” said Wolfsburg playmaker Diego.

Two goals from Jan Schlaudraff and one from Mohammed Abdellaoue earned Hannover its win at home to Kaiserslautern, to move Mirko Slomka’s side to third, pending Bayern’s result at Mainz.

“Our target for the season was to reach 40 points as soon as possible. Nobody thought it would happen so quickly,” Hannover coach Mirko Slomka said. “Of course we want to defend our position in the top five.”

An own goal gave Hoffenheim the lead at home to Cologne in the 48th, when Milivoje Novakovic headed the ball into his own net from a Sebastian Rudy free kick.

Ryan Babel hit the post for Hoffenheim in the 67th, and Cologne equalized two minutes later with Youssef Mohamad’s header from a free kick by Christian Clemens.

Labels: beats, Bundesliga, Dortmund, leader, Pauli

PARIS (AP)—Marseille beat Saint-Etienne 2-1 Saturday in the French league to keep up its title challenge.

The defending champion cut Lille’s lead to three points and provisionally moved up to second in the standings. Lille is at Montpellier on Sunday.

Lucho Gonzalez opened the scoring for the defending champion in the 68th minute after being set up by Andre-Pierre Gignac.

Gignac picked up a groin injury however and was replaced by Jordan Ayew in the 74th. Ayew was denied by Saint-Etienne goalkeeper Jeremie Janot in the 78th but Loic Remy followed up to convert the rebound.

Christophe Landrin scored a consolation goal for Saint-Etienne in stoppage time.

Also Saturday, it was: Brest 2, Monaco 0; Lens 2, Sochaux 3; Caen 2, Valenciennes 2; Auxerre 1, Arles-Avignon 1.

Bordeaux played Lorient later on Saturday.

Labels: beats, French, league, Marseille, SaintEtienne

ATHENS, Greece (AP)—Olympiakos took a giant step toward winning the Greek title for the 38th time with a 2-1 win over defending champion and archrival Panathinaikos on Saturday in a game that ended in chaotic scenes.

Rafik Djebbour’s injury-time goal sealed the win and put Olympiakos 10 points ahead of its second-place rival with seven rounds left.

The delirious Olympiakos fans charged onto the pitch at the final whistle and Panathinaikos players, already upset by a disallowed goal and the manner of the winner, claimed they were attacked.

Panathinaikos forward Djibril Cisse, one of the players allegedly attacked by the crowd, was so angry he told reporters he would leave Greece in a few months.

“Enough is enough,” Cisse told reporters after the game. “I have taken my decision. You (the reporters) should take advantage of the fact that these will be my last few months in Greece.”

Cisse was upset the referee chalked off Costas Katsouranis’ 81st minute strike for offside, and that Djebbour’s goal was allowed to stand. Panathinaikos players and officials claim Djebbour was in an offside position.

“We won the match. I know it, you know it,” Cisse told reporters.

About 400 Panathinaikos fans gathered outside Panathinaikos’ training facilities east of Athens and gave the players a standing ovation. They pleaded with Cisse to reconsider his decision.

Cisse, the Greek league’s top scorer last season, with 23 goals, and the leading scorer this season with 18, signed a four-year contract with Panathinaikos in 2009, reportedly worth ?2.5 million ($3.4 million) per year.

“It’s a shame, a great shame,” Panathinaikos midfielder Gilberto Silva said. A 2008 signing from Arsenal, Gilberto Silva, a Brazil national team member, is expected to return to his homeland after the season.

Panathinaikos officials were furious at referee Dimitris Kalopoulos.

“This was a clear robbery… They (the Olympiakos fans) hit four of our players, specifically (Cedric) Kante, (Josu) Sarriegi, (Sotiris) Ninis and Cisse. The authorities will be inexcusable if they do not slap Olympiakos with a heavy penalty,” Panathinaikos vice president Dimitris Gontikas said.

A Panathinaikos statement called the game a “sorry shadow puppet theater spectacle.”

Olympiakos president Vangelis Marinakis tried to downplay reports that he had a run-in with Panathinaikos players after the game.

“Get serious, guys, get serious,” he told reporters when asked about it.

“There should be no complaints,” Marinakis, a shipping tycoon, had said earlier. “We are ahead by 10 points (in the standings) and deservedly so.”

Djebbour struck a minute into stoppage time, chesting the ball down and scoring from close range to send the home fans into delirium.

The referee had to pause the game for four minutes as fans lit flares in the stands, causing smoke to billow across the pitch, and when the action resumed, Olympiakos had Vasilis Torossidis sent off for shoving Sebastian Leto.

Leto, a former Olympiakos player who moved to Panathinaikos in 2009, was the main target of the home fans’ ire during the game.

Reports suggested that a group of Panathinaikos players, upset by Torossidis’ treatment of Leto during the game, tried to confront the player afterward in the Olympiakos locker room, but instead ended up in a heated exchange with Marinakis.

Kevin Mirallas had opened the scoring for Olympiakos in the 20th minute before Leto equalized in the 58th.

Olympiakos dominated almost throughout the first half, with 63 percent of possession.

Mirallas opened the scoring in the 20th minute following a carefully orchestrated move from a freekick. The Belgian striker had positioned himself next to the defensive wall and bolted free to receive Ariel Ibagaza’s pass and shoot into the far corner of the goal.

That prompted the first stoppage by the referee as heavy smoke from the Olympiakos fans’ flares covered the pitch.

Leto equalized in the 58th. His curling freekick from near the right sideline was intended as a cross but teammate Josu Sarriegi missed his header, the Olympiakos defense failed to clear and the ball bounced in front of startled goalkeeper Urko Pardo before finding the net.

Panathinaikos thought it had scored a winner in the 81st when Katsouranis put the ball in the net but his effort was ruled out for offside—although replays suggested it was an incorrect decision.

And the visitors’ luck took another turn for the worse in injury time when Jaouad Zairi’s cross bounced off Dudu’s shoulder and into the path of Djebbour who scrambled it home under pressure from Sarriegi.

Also Saturday, Kerkyra won 2-0 at Asteras and host Kavala played to a scoreless draw against last-place Panserraikos.

On Sunday it’s Atromitos vs. Aris, Xanthi vs. Larissa, AEK vs. Panionios and Volos vs. Iraklis. The PAOK vs. Ergotelis game, originally scheduled for Saturday, has been postponed and no new date has been set.

Labels: beats, Greek, league, Olympiakos, Panathinaikos

In a repeat of last year's final, Carter started brightly with a 118 before the world number one hit back with breaks of 71 and 76 to lead 2-1.

Carter levelled at 2-2 but then his Scottish opponent turned on the style after the interval, with two quick frames and knocks of 69 and 55.

Higgins powered on in Newport and will now play Mark Selby or Stephen Maguire.

Carter, who last won the title in 2009, struggled after the interval and was unable to stay at the table for any substantial length of time as his opponent took hold of the match.

Higgins now has his sights set on his second major title of the year after marking his return from a six-month ban by winning the UK Championship.

The 35-year-old is competing for the first time since pulling out of the German Masters after his father, also called John, lost his battle with cancer earlier this month.

Tomorrow's final will be his fifth at the event, with Higgins looking to add to the titles he won in 2000 and 2010.

Labels: beats, Carter, final, Higgins, reach, Sport, Welsh

FLORENCE, Italy (AP)—Inter Milan closed within five points of Serie A leader AC Milan, winning 2-1 at Fiorentina on Wednesday on Michele Camporese’s own goal in the sixth minute and Giampaolo Pazzini’s goal in the 61st.

Manuel Pasqual had tied the score in the 33rd minute for Fiorentina.

AC Milan (15-3-7) leads with 52 points, followed by Napoli (15-6-4) with 49 and Inter (14-6-5) with 47.

In the day’s other game, Genoa beat city rival Sampdoria 1-0 on Rafinha’s 55th-minute goal.

Labels: beats, Fiorentina, Inter, Milan

MILAN (AP)—Tottenham Hotspur headed home from Italy with a valuable away goal, putting Spurs in decent position to reach the European Champions League quarterfinals.

Peter Crouch scored in the 80th minute after Aaron Lennon dashed through the defense on a counterattack for a 1-0 first leg win at AC Milan in the second round on Tuesday night.

“When I beat the first defender and saw Crouchy was free, I was always going to put it across to him,” Lennon said.

Crouch’s goal was his sixth in eight European games this season.

“I thought we limited them to not many chances and I think we were the better side,” Crouch said. “It’s a fantastic achievement.”

Zlatan Ibrahimovic thought he scored to tie it in injury time, but his overhead kick was ruled out for a two-handed push into the back of Spurs captain Michael Dawson.

A heated second half ended at San Siro with Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso charging toward the Tottenham bench and headbutting assistant coach Joe Jordan. Gattuso was involved in an earlier altercation.

“They lost their heads a bit at the end,” Spurs manager Harry Redknapp said, also referring to a diving tackle by Mathieu Flamini on Vedran Corluka that led to the Tottenham player being stretchered off.

“How has he not got a red card for that?” Redknapp said of Flamini. “It’s an absolute disgrace.”

Milan goalkeeper Christian Abbiati had a busy first 15 minutes, then was taken off on a stretcher on the 18th after colliding with Crouch. Abbiati was replaced by Marco Amelia.

In the day’s other game, Raul Gonzalez’s record 71st goal in European competition gave Schalke a 1-1 tie at Valencia.

Returning to Spain for the first time since his summer move from Real Madrid, Raul held off David Navarro in the 64th minute and slotted past goalkeeper Vicente Guaita. He broke a tie for European goals with Milan’s Filippo Inzaghi.

Roberto Soldado had put Valencia ahead in the 17th when he redirected Jeremy Mathieu’s cross past goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.

The second leg of the total-goals series will be played on March 9.

Barcelona is at Arsenal on Wednesday in the round’s most-anticipated matchup, and Shakhtar Donetsk is at AS Roma.

First-leg matches next week have Chelsea at Copenhagen, and Real Madrid at Lyon on Tuesday, and Bayern Munich at defending champion Inter Milan and Manchester United at Marseille on Wednesday.

THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP)—Aris held Manchester City to a 0-0 draw in the second round of the second-tier Europa League, allowing the Greek team to maintain a 40-year unbeaten European home record.

Man City fielded Carlos Tevez, Edin Dzeko, Mario Balotelli and David Silva, an attacking lineup that combined to cost more than $150 million.

City, which hasn’t won a major title since the 1976 League Cup, hosts Aris in the second leg on Feb. 24. The other 15 first-leg matches are on Thursday.

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP)—Newcastle won for the first time in six matches, with Peter Lovenkrands scoring in the second minute and Leon Best added a goal in the 50th for a 2-0 victory at Birmingham in the Premier League.

Jonas Gutierrez setup both goals in rainswept conditions as Newcastle won for the first time since star forward Andy Carroll joined Liverpool last month for 35 million pounds (then $56 million).

Newcastle (9-8-10) is ninth with 35 points. Birmingham (6-8-12) is 14th, three points above the relegation zone.

Labels: beats, Milan, Tottenham

Wayne Rooney's first-half double guided unbeaten Premier League leader Manchester United to a convincing 3-1 win over Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Tuesday. The England striker opened the scoring after just 48 seconds and added a second on the stroke of halftime to set United on its way to a 12th win in 13 home matches this campaign.

Labels: beats, Rooney, scores, United, Villa

BOLTON, England (AP)—Daniel Sturridge kept up his impressive scoring record for Bolton to inspire a 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Everton in the Premier League on Sunday.

The England under-21 forward scored for the third straight match since joining on loan from Chelsea on transfer deadline day, smashing home a swerving finish in the 67th minute to seal Bolton’s victory.

Sturridge, who was one of English football’s great hopes when he came through the ranks at Manchester City, rarely featured at Chelsea following his move to Stamford Bridge in 2009. But he is flourishing now he is getting regular starts at Bolton.

“I’m just delighted to be playing first-team football,” he said. “The manager has instilled a lot of confidence in me, told me to go out and play my normal game. I’m enjoying it.”

Gary Cahill put the hosts ahead in the 10th minute, his header from an inswinging free kick by Stuart Holden deflecting into the net off the unfortunate Everton defender John Heitinga.

Everton struggled to create many clear-cut chances and remain 13th in the standings, three points off the bottom three.

Bolton is now a point behind seventh-place Sunderland.

Cahill had already shown he was a threat at set-pieces by heading wide at the far post early on following Matt Taylor’s deep corner.

But Everton didn’t learn the lesson and, minutes later, the England center back found space in the area to meet Holden’s free kick with a header that deflected off the static Heitinga and into the net past wrong-footed goalkeeper Tom Howard.

Australia midfielder Tim Cahill was Everton’s most dangerous player at the other end, shooting wide in the 17th before firing straight at goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen from the edge of the area just before halftime.

Everton dominated possession at the start of the second half but failed to seriously trouble Jaaskelainen. The concession of a second goal then killed off any realistic hopes of a comeback.

A long ball hoisted forward by the Bolton defense ended with Lee nodding a header down to Sturridge, who was running in from the right. The forward’s finish was unerring as it fizzed past Howard from 10 yards.

Sturridge also scored the winner against Wolverhampton on his Bolton debut on Feb. 2, and again at Tottenham last weekend.

Holden had a goal disallowed in the 79th when the ball was harshly adjudged to be out of play as Sturridge backheeled to the United States midfielder. Sturridge then curled just wide from long range as Bolton threatened to score a third.

Labels: beats, Bolton, Everton, league, Premier

GLASGOW, Scotland (AP)—Celtic moved five points clear of Glasgow rival Rangers at the top of the Scottish Premier League with a 3-1 victory at Dundee United on Sunday.

Celtic went into halftime at Tannadice with a 2-0 lead thanks to deflected efforts by top scorer Anthony Stokes and Mark Wilson.

The hosts, who came into the match boasting an 11-game unbeaten run, halved the deficit in the 64th minute when David Goodwillie crashed home a close-range finish.

But Celtic wrapped up the win when Daniel Majstorovic headed in from an inswinging free kick, extending its run to 16 matches without defeat.

Second-place Rangers, which beat Motherwell 6-0 on Saturday, has two games in hand over its cross-city rival.

Labels: beats, Celtic, clear, Dundee, points

ATHENS, Greece (AP)—Olympiakos scraped a 1-0 win over visiting Xanthi after an own goal by defender Olubayo Adefemi on Sunday, maintaining a seven-point lead over defending Greek champion Panathinaikos.

Ten-man Panathinaikos won 1-0 at PAOK to move 13 points clear of its third-place rival.

Also Sunday, Volos beat Atromitos 2-0, Ergotelis defeated Panionios 2-0 and Kavala downed Kerkyra 1-0.

Olympiakos attacked from the start but it was Xanthi which missed the first scoring chance in 16th minute when Christopher Katongo dribbled past two defenders and shot from the edge of the area, only to be denied by goalkeeper Urko Pardo.

Ten minutes later, Albert Riera’s free kick found Francois Modesto inside Xanthi’s area but the latter’s header bounced off Xanthi’s crossbar.

The hosts scored their only goal seconds before halftime. Vassilis Torossidis crossed from the right, David Fuster rose to head the ball and Adefemi, attempting to defend, pushed the ball into the net.

In the 60th, Riera found Torossidis inside the area but Xanthi goalkeeper Michael Gspurning blocked the shot with his legs.

Gspurning also had to intervene in the 77th when he jumped and palmed away a long lob by Ariel Ibagaza.

Xanthi nearly equalized in injury time, but Pardo rushed out of his goal to meet the charging Adefemi at the edge of his area and kick the ball away.

In Thessaloniki, Panathinaikos took the lead in the 10th minute through Sotiris Ninis’ curling free kick and had to fend off PAOK’s continual attacks for the rest of the game.

The hosts missed their best chance in the 37th when Vieirinha’s long-range shot hit the crossbar.

The defending champion was forced to play a man short for the whole second half after Nikos Spyropoulos saw a yellow card in the 43rd. PAOK was unable to capitalize on its superiority despite having eight shots on goal to Panathinaikos’ none.

PAOK also ended the game a man short after Pablo Contreras was dismissed in the 74th.

Panathinaikos’ only second-half foray into PAOK’s area came in the 88th, when Gilberto Silva’s through ball sent Costas Katsouranis alone with goalkeeper Costas Halkias, but Katsouranis shot wide.

Labels: beats, leads, Olympiakos, points, Xanthi

MEXICO CITY (AP)—Christian Gimenez and Emanuel Villa scored in each half to give Cruz Azul a 2-0 home win over Chiapas in the fifth round of the Mexican Clausura championship Saturday.

Gimenez scored with a shot that rebounded in off the post in the 38th minute and Villa finished a cross in the 58th to move Cruz Azul atop the tournament’s Group 3 overnight.

San Luis tops the general standings after rallying to win 3-2 over Estudiantes Tecos, while UANL Tigres had a 2-0 victory at Santos to head Group 1.

Elsewhere, defending champion Monterrey won 2-0 at home over a 10-man Pachuca, while Guadalajara beat Atlante 2-0.

The fifth round continues Sunday with Puebla vs. UNAM Pumas, Toluca vs. Atlas and America vs. Queretaro.

Atlas could move above San Luis in the general standings with a win at Toluca.

The 18 clubs in Mexico’s Primera Division are split into three groups, with the top two in each group, and the two other clubs best placed in the general standings, automatically contesting end-of-season playoffs.

In Torreon, Hector Mancilla opened the scoring for Tigres at Santos after a pass from American international Jonathan Bornstein in the ninth minute.

Bornstein produced an influential performance in midfield as he continues to settle in Mexico following a postseason move from Chivas USA.

Juninho scored the second for Tigres from Lucas Lobos’ cross just before halftime to seal the win and put Tigres on ten points, three clear of Santos atop the tournament’s Group 1.

Reigning title holder Monterrey got its second victory in five matches with a win over Pachuca.

Aldo De Nigris headed in Neri Cardozo’s cross in the 27th minute and Pachuca was reduced to 10 men when Leobardo Lopez was sent off for a 31st-minute challenge on Monterrey captain Luis Perez that looked innocuous in TV replays.

Monterrey took advantage of the extra man as Cardozo added the second goal with a volley into the bottom corner from Humberto Suazo’s back-post cross in the 49th.

Monterrey moved to six points in Group 1, level with Chivas of Guadalajara, which scored two late goals to defeat Atlante.

Patricio Araujo headed the opener for Chivas after Erick Torres nodded a free kick back across goal and Hector Reynoso scored a stoppage-time penalty after Marco Fabian was fouled in the box on a counter attack.

In Saturday’s final match, Wilmer Aguirre hit an 89th-minute penalty as San Luis rallied past Estudiantes Tecos, which had three players sent off.

Elgabry Rangel opened the scoring for Estudiantes from Rubens Sambueza’s pass in the 21st minute and Sambueza gave the visitors a two-goal cushion in the 55th.

Luis Hernandez started the comeback with a 63rd-mintue header and Juan Manuel Cavallo equalized for San Luis in the 79th.

Diego Jimenez was sent off for Estudiantes in the 83rd and Manuel Moran was also shown a red card after fouling Juan Cuevas for the penalty that Wilmer Aguirre converted to snatch the points for San Luis.

Juan Leano became the third Estudiantes player to be sent off after receiving a second yellow card for a foul deep in stoppage time.

San Luis, which has played six matches, tops the general standings and Group 2 with 11 points, while Estudiantes is level on points with Monterrey and Guadalajara in Group 1.

Labels: beats, Chiapas

The Guardian

Golden Silver beats Big Zeb as Willie Mullins gets 950-1 five-timer The Guardian Golden Silver brought Big Zeb's year-long unbeaten run to an end at Punchestown today, finishing powerfully to win the Tied Cottage Chase by half a length and present his trainer, Willie Mullins, with a dilemma over his Cheltenham Festival target. ... Silver foils Zeb in Tied CottageThe Press Association Golden Silver collars Big Zeb to land Tied CottageRacing Post Big Zeb poised to continue winning run to CheltenhamIrish Times Setanta Sports Ireland -Irish Independent -bettor.com (blog) all 106 news articles »

Labels: beats, fivetimer, Golden, Guardian, Mullins, Silver, Willie

Gaizka Toquero scored twice to give Athletic Bilbao a 2-0 win over 10-man Atletico Madrid on Sunday to strengthen the Basques' claim on a Europa League spot in Spain. Toquero raced unmarked into the area to volley home Andoni Iraola's cross on halftime, and then stabbed in another cross by Iraola to double Bilbao's lead in the 64th.

Labels: Atletico, beats, Bilbao, Madrid, scores, Toquero

Labels: beats, league, maintains, Olympiakos, Volos

Gaizka Toquero scored twice to give Athletic Bilbao a 2-0 win over 10-man Atletico Madrid on Sunday to strengthen the Basques' claim on a Europa League spot in Spain. Toquero raced unmarked into the area to volley home Andoni Iraola's cross on halftime, and then stabbed in another cross by Iraola to double Bilbao's lead in the 64th.

Labels: Atletico, beats, Bilbao, Madrid, scores, Toquero