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BERLIN: Robert Lewandowski banged in his 35th league goal on the final day of the Bundesliga season Saturday as Bayern Munich contradicted reports their top-scoring striker could join Barcelona this summer. “’Lewy’ has a contract until June 2023,” Bayern director Hasan Salihamidzic said before Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Wolfsburg. “There have been no conversations between Bayern Munich and other clubs. Our position is clear.” Bayern insist Lewandowski will stay, yet German media outlets claim the 33-year-old has refused to sign an extension and wants to join Barcelona for next season. A crisp Lewandowski header from a Thomas Mueller cross put Bayern 2-0 up after defender Josip Stanisic netted his first Bundesliga goal for the visitors. Wolfsburg clawed their way back as Danish forward Jonas Wind scored, then veteran striker Max Kruse levelled for the hosts. Erling Haaland signed off his final appearance for second-placed Borussia Dortmund in a 2-1 home win over Hertha Berlin. The Norwegian star is set to complete a long-awaited move to Manchester City for next season. Haaland equalized from the penalty spot in the second half to cancel out Ishak Belfodil’s early goal for Hertha at Signal Iduna Park. Dortmund’s 17-year-old striker Youssoufa Moukoko came off the bench and grabbed the winner, just seconds after replacing Axel Witsel. The defeat pushed Hertha into 16th, which means a relegation play-off against the team which finishes third in the second division, currently Hamburg. There were dramatic scenes in Stuttgart where Japan midfielder Wataru Endo scored a stoppage-time winner to seal a 2-1 win over Cologne. The win saw Stuttgart claw their way to 15th and guaranteed survival next season. Stuttgart striker Sasa Kalajdzic made amends for having a first-half penalty saved by heading in the resulting corner 26 seconds later. Cologne equalized when veteran French striker Anthony Modeste headed in his 20th goal of the season until Endo struck. Stuttgart fans stormed the pitch at the final whistle to kick off the celebrations. Cologne finish seventh to qualify for the Europa Conference League. Union Berlin will play in the Europa League next season after finishing fifth after Nigeria striker Taiwo Awoniyi netted twice to seal a 3-2 win. Union raced into a 2-0 lead as Grischa Proemel gave the hosts an early lead before Awoniyi converted a penalty. Bochum roared back as Simon Zoller headed in a goal, then Eduard Loewen levelled before Awoniyi grabbed a late winner. Freiburg finished sixth and punched their Europa League ticket despite losing 2-1 at Bayer Leverkusen, whose Argentinian defender Exequiel Palacios scored the winner seven minutes into stoppage time. Arminia Bielefeld joined Greuther Fuerth in being relegated from Germany’s top flight despite a 1-1 draw at RB Leipzig, who finished fourth and qualified for the Champions League. Germany midfielder Jonas Hofmann scored twice as Borussia Moenchengladbach thrashed Hoffenheim 5-1. Brazil defender Tutu and Colombia striker Rafael Borre hit the net as Eintracht Frankfurt tuned up for Wednesday’s Europa League final against Rangers with a 2-2 draw at Mainz.
MADRID: Eden Hazard will stay at Real Madrid next season as the Belgian is determined to prove his worth after a nightmare three years, Carlo Ancelotti said on Saturday. Hazard was one of the best players in the world when he joined Real Madrid for an initial 100 million euros in 2019 but he has been plagued by injury problems since moving to Spain. The 31-year-old underwent surgery on his right ankle at the end of March in the hope of solving the latest in a long line of fitness issues. Even when available this season, Hazard has been reduced to a bit-part role in the team but Ancelotti insists the plan is not for him to leave this summer. “We haven’t spoken about that, the plan is quite clear,” Ancelotti said in a press conference. “He has a lot of motivation because he hasn’t had a good time these last few years and he wants to show all of his quality, which for many reasons he hasn’t been able to do.” Hazard is available again and could face Cadiz on Sunday after his latest operation removed a metal plate that was inserted to stabilize his ankle in March 2020. But he faces a fight to establish himself in Real Madrid’s starting line-up next season, with Vinicius Junior emerging as one of the team’s most explosive players this term and Kylian Mbappe expected to arrive from Paris Saint-Germain this summer. “With a squad like Real Madrid’s you always play a lot of games,” Ancelotti said. “There’s tiredness and we will rotate, even if we haven’t much this year. “I think the quantity of minutes isn’t so important, it’s about the quality,” Ancelotti added. “We have a clear example in Rodrygo. He hasn’t played a lot of minutes but he’s played with great quality and made the difference.” Ancelotti said Karim Benzema will be rested against Cadiz, despite the Frenchman being one goal away from overtaking Raul in the list of Real Madrid’s all-time scorers. Benzema and Raul are level on 323 goals for Madrid, behind only Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored 450. Vinicius and Thibaut Courtois will also sit out for the La Liga champions as Ancelotti looks to keep his players fresh for the Champions League final against Liverpool on May 28. “I will give them a rest because they deserve it,” Ancelotti said.
China ended weeks of speculation and officially withdrew from hosting the 2023 AFC Asian Cup on Saturday, the continent’s football confederation said.
The announcement sparked speculation over which country will be named as the replacement, with Qatar expected to take over.
The decision came as no surprise as China struggles to contain the spread of COVID-19. In the past few weeks, the East Asian Football Championships, due to be held in July, had been switched to Japan, while the 2022 Asian Games, due to take place in Hangzhou in September, were postponed.
“The Asian Football Confederation acknowledges the exceptional circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the relinquishment by China PR of its hosting rights,” the AFC said in a statement.
It added that China “had made this very difficult but necessary decision in the collective interests of the AFC Asian Cup 2023, which has also provided the AFC the required time to assess the situation regarding the hosting of the AFC Asian Cup 2023.”
The focus now is on where and when the 2023 Asian Cup will be held. Qatar are front-runners to step in and stage the competition in January 2024. The 2022 World Cup host will have the stadiums, facilities and know-how to do the job.
However, the decision will not be taken in isolation as there is 2027 to consider. Qatar and Saudi Arabia are front-runners in the bidding for that tournament, ahead of India and Iran. If Qatar replace China then the coast will then be clear for Saudi Arabia to stage the following competition three years later. This is currently the most-talked about solution at the AFC, and would be acceptable to both Qatar and Saudi Arabia, but there are still issues to iron out.
It would mean three consecutive tournaments in West Asia: The UAE in 2019, Qatar in 2023 and Saudi Arabia in 2027. That would not go down well in some parts of the continent. Perhaps the ideal solution would be for South Korea, who originally planned to bid for the 2023 Asian Cup but withdrew in favor of China, to step in either alone or with Japan.
However, an official at the Korea Football Association told Arab News that while they would have discussions in the wake of China’s withdrawal, it is unlikely that they will rekindle their earlier efforts.
Japan seems to be even less enthusiastic — neither politicians nor the general population seem especially interested in staging a huge tournament with COVID-19 still lingering. East Asia, which has not hosted the tournament since 2004, may not be happy at the prospect of the tournament becoming a Western affair, but just does not have the will to do anything about it.
Southeast Asia could be another option, as in 2007 when Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand came together, but it is unlikely they would be able to get themselves organized in time even if the desire was there. China may want the 2027 tournament, but is not in a position to be making any demands.
Time is of the essence. China have given up the tournament over a year before it was due to kick off and this was because of the AFC’s insistence on either a guarantee or a withdrawal. Organizing a 24-nation competition takes time, which is why the confederation will want a replacement announced sooner rather than later. It will not be a major problem if the tournament is held in January 2024 as that gives a few extra months to prepare.
The continent’s flagship tournament appears to be coming back to West Asia sooner than expected, but there are sure to be some deep discussions at the AFC Congress due to be held on Wednesday.
LOS ANGELES: The Golden State Warriors pulled away late to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 110-96 and reach the NBA Western Conference finals on Friday as the Boston Celtics stayed alive in the East with a 108-95 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Klay Thompson drained eight three-pointers on the way to 30 for the Warriors. Stephen Curry added six three-pointers and 29 points as Golden State completed a 4-2 victory in the best-of-seven series.
They will face either the Phoenix Suns or Dallas Mavericks, who play a deciding Game 7 in their series on Sunday.
So will the Celtics and defending NBA champions Milwaukee after Jayson Tatum’s 46 points powered Boston to a victory that knotted their series at three games apiece.
With his team facing elimination, Tatum came through. He drilled seven of the Celtics’ 17 three-pointers to help them withstand a 44-point, 20-rebound performance from Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo and knot the best-of-seven series at three games each.
“Our season was on the line,” Tatum said. “I knew that and we knew that. We had to give it all we’ve got.”
Antetokounmpo posted the first 40-point, 20-rebound game since Shaquille O’Neal in 2001, but his third 40-point outburst in four games was not enough for the reigning champs to advance.
The winner of the series will take on the Miami Heat for a place in the NBA Finals.
Tatum reeled off 11 straight Boston points in the fourth quarter to help thwart a rally by the Bucks, who closed a 13-point deficit to four on Antetokounmpo’s three-pointer early in the final period.
“Huge night by (Tatum),” Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. “Other guys, as well, but (Tatum) definitely needed.”
It looked briefly as if the Bucks might author another impressive comeback victory, after erasing a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to win Game 5 on Wednesday.
But Tatum and the rest of the Celtics would not let that happen.
“He took it to another level,” Boston’s Al Horford said of Tatum. “That’s what big-time players do in moments like this. He’s a special player and he showed it tonight. He’s poised, knew when to shoot it and knew when to pass it, knew when to attack.
“We put a lot on him and he delivered.”
Jaylen Brown scored 22 points, and point guard Marcus Smart added 21 points for the Celtics.
Jrue Holiday scored 17 for Milwaukee, and Pat Connaughton with 14 was the only other Bucks player to score in double figures.
In San Francisco, it was nip and tuck through three quarters with Curry making two straight baskets to put the Warriors up 78-77 going into the fourth period.
Curry scored 11 points in the final quarter and Andrew Wiggins scored 10 of his 18 as the Warriors, down by two with 6:55 remaining, turned the tide.
Draymond Green chipped in 14 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists. Kevon Looney pulled down 22 rebounds for the Warriors, who had a chance to close out the series in the previous game and were blown out by 39 points.
They reached the conference finals for the first time since 2019, when the franchise reached a fifth straight NBA Finals but fell to Toronto in the championship series.
“I used to take it for granted,” Green said of reaching the conference finals. “I have a much deeper appreciation for it, it’s so hard.”
The Grizzlies, who eliminated the Warriors in the play-in tournament last year, were without young star Ja Morant, who suffered a bone bruise in his left knee in game four of the series.
Dillon Brooks led the Grizzlies on Friday with 30 points and Desmond Bane added 25, but Memphis could not find an answer at the end.
“This obviously stings,” Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said. “Such a special season with a special group, and I want them to cherish that, remember that, despite this loss.”
McKINNEY, Texas: Jordan Spieth thought the course for his hometown Byron Nelson would play more difficult after yielding more birdies in its debut than any other tournament on the PGA Tour last season.
The three-time major winner says he couldn’t have been more wrong, and is frankly surprised over how little he thinks was done the first two days to make TPC Craig Ranch a stiffer test.
Ryan Palmer, one of the Dallas-area players in the shadow of Spieth and Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, shot a 10-under 62 on Friday and was tied at 15 under with Sebastián Muñoz and 40-year-old tour rookie David Skinns.
Muñoz, a Colombian who lives in the Dallas area and went to college at North Texas, was even through 13 holes coming off his second 60 of the season — a first on the PGA Tour — before birdies on three of four holes for a 69. Skinns shot 63.
Justin Lower, another older tour rookie at 33, was alone in fourth, a shot behind the leaders after a 66.
“I mean, a 60 yesterday and a lot of 8s (under) and 7s all over the board,” said Spieth, who shot 65 and was three shots off the lead in a group that includes defending champion K.H. Lee.
“It’s just, a lot of tees are up, it was very surprising,” Spieth said. “I think they were looking at the weekend as a lot less wind and so they used more of the easier pins the first two days because I can only name one or two pins on this golf course that were not the easiest two locations that are on the greens. I’m a little surprised at how, on a not-so-difficult golf course they have also set it up a little easier for us, too.”
The Nelson was the only 2020-21 tournament with more than 2,000 birdies (2,007). There were 38 eagles in the first round Thursday, the most for a single round this season.
Charl Schwartzel had one of the Friday eagles in a round of 65 that put him at 13 under. The 2011 Masters winner drove into a greenside bunker on the 316-yard, par-4 14th and holed out from there.
The top-ranked Scheffler, who came in with four wins in six individual events capped by the Masters victory, shot a 68 and was 9 under after two rounds alongside his fellow former Texas Longhorns in Spieth and Lee.
Palmer, who finished his opening round with an eagle on the par-5 18th, started on the back nine and birdied six of the last seven holes on that side, then added four more on the front in a bogey-free round.
The 45-year-old hasn’t won an individual event since 2010 in Hawaii. Palmer lives in nearby Colleyville and is a member at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, where the tour returns in two weeks after the PGA Championship at Southern Hills.
Palmer had a two-shot lead halfway through his last Texas stop in San Antonio in early April before shooting 7 over on the weekend. He is a four-time winner, including the 2019 Zurich team event in New Orleans with Jon Rahm.
“I spent 19 years doing this, unbelievable that I’ve been here that long, and these young guys ... you got to play such great golf to beat ‘em,” Palmer said. “We’re in position again and we’ll learn from what we learned in San Antonio and try and do it here.”
Lee won the rain-plagued Craig Ranch debut at 25 under while Spieth tied for ninth, his personal best in a tournament he badly wants to win because of his remarkable pro debut at the Nelson as a 16-year-old Sunday contender in 2010.
There’s no hint of rain this time in McKinney, about 30 miles north of downtown Dallas, and the wind was brisk the first two days. Combine that with the expectation of the rough being more of a factor a year after a February deep freeze wiped it out, and Spieth figured scores would be higher.
Instead, he found himself calling out the moved-up tee box on the par-5 ninth, which played just 474 yards and an average nearly three-quarters of a stroke below par Friday. It was the easiest hole on the course.
The Tom Weiskopf-designed course also has wide fairways and large greens.
“Some familiarity to me with some of the courses I played back in South Africa,” said Schwartzel, who tied for third at 21 under last year. “I don’t feel claustrophobic off the tee. It gives me a bit of space, and once I can get it in play, iron play is not much of a problem. So just really comfortable.”
Skinns, an Englishman with no top-25 finishes in 20 PGA Tour appearances spread out over nearly a decade, had five consecutive birdies starting on the par-3 seventh in his career-best round.
Lower hasn’t finished higher than tied for 15th in an individual event. He paired with Dylan Wu to tie for 10th in the team event in New Orleans.
The ninth-ranked Spieth and No. 17 Joaquin Niemann, also at 12 under, lead the list of 10 among the world’s top 30 in the field.
No. 13 Hideki Matsuyama was 11 under, a shot better than eighth-ranked Justin Thomas, who spent the first two days in the group ahead of Spieth, his good friend and house guest for this week.
No. 11 Dustin Johnson was 7 under, and 12th-ranked Xander Schauffele rallied from 3 over for the tournament early in the second round with eight birdies over 10 holes to make the cut on the number at 5 under.
The rest of the top 30 players missed the cut: 10th-ranked Sam Burns, the runner-up to Lee at the Nelson last year; Will Zalatoris (28th), another player in his hometown event; and Kevin Kisner (30th).
CLIFTON, New Jersey: The only only thing missing from Minjee Lee’s resume this year is a victory and the best scorer on the LPGA Tour took a big step toward that in the second round of the Cognizant Founders Cup.
Lee flirted with the best round on tour this season before settling for a 9-under 63 and a three-shot lead Friday at the halfway point of the event that honors the 13 founding members of the women’s tour. The Australian had a 14-under 130 total at Upper Montclair Country Club.
“Hitting it close really helps you, just like I said before, really just frees you up,” said Lee, who has two top-five finishes in six events. “Even with the short putts, it’s just like a little more confidence boost.”
First-round leader Madelene Sagstrom, Lexi Thompson and Ally Ewing shared second after the round played under a cloudy sky with sporadic light rain less than 10 miles from New York City. Sagstrom had a 70, while Thompson and Ewing had 66s in finishing at 11 under .
Lee got to 10 under with three holes to play but bogeyed the 16th and failed to tie the tour’s low round of 62 by Yuka Saso of Japan in the Honda event in Thailand.
Lee, who entered the week with a scoring averaging of 69.167, tied for second in the HSBC Women’s World Championship in March and shared third in the Los Angeles Open last month.
“Maybe this will be the first one and it’ll kick start the rest of the year,” she said.
Sagstrom, who had a 63 on Thursday, got off to a slow start trying to go low again.
“A lot of things can happen,” Sagstrom said. “A lot of the things can happen to the golf course, the way they set it up and all that. So just giving myself a chance is all I can about myself, and my best today was 2 under, so I was really pleased.”
The 27-year-old Thompson has won 11 LPGA titles, including a major, but she has not won on tour since the ShopRite Classic in New Jersey three years ago.
She was not happy being asked about the drought.
“The talent out here is truly amazing. I mean, it’s tough to win,” she said. “All I can do is control my emotions and how much hard work I put in, and I know the amount of work that I put into it, so if it doesn’t happen, doesn’t happen. It’s not the end of my life.”
Ewing, who has missed the cut in three of seven events, said she tends to start the season slow. She had bogey and seven birdies, with four coming on her first five holes.
“It’s exciting to see that my game has been trending, and just overall I’m just looking forward to the weekend and hopefully I can keep producing the same results,” said Ewing, who has won twice on tour.
Sanna Nuutinen, a 31-year-old Finn playing her first season on the LPGA Tour, had a 68 and was alone in fifth at 135.
Carlota Ciganda, Paula Reto and Megan Khang, who was a shot behind Sagstrom after the opening round, were tied at 136.
Nasa Hataoka, who had an opening round 65, had a 73 and was in a big group at 6-under, a shot ahead of two-time defending champion and No. 1 ranked Jin Young Ko of South Korea, who had in another large group at 5-under after a second-round 70.
Anna Davis, the 16-year-old who won the recent Augusta National Women’s Amateur, made her second straight cut playing on a sponsor’s exemption. She was at 140 after two straight 70s.
Eighty players in the field of 144 made the cut at 1-under. Among those missing it were Marina Alex, the New Jersey native who won at Palos Verdes last month, Solheim Cup captain Stacy Lewis and Leona Maguire of Ireland, who won this year at the LPGA Drive On Championship.