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WORLD SPORT
Gulf Daily News Thursday, 29th January 2015
Email: [email protected]
Figo to challenge Blatter for Fifa presidency
LONDON: Former Portugal and
Real Madrid winger Luis Figo
announced yesterday that he is to
challenge incumbent Sepp Blatter
in this year’s Fifa presidential election.
“I care about football, so what I’m
seeing regarding the image of Fifa - not
only now but in the past years - I don’t
like it,” the 42-year-old said in an interview broadcast by CNN.
“If you search Fifa on the internet you
see the first word that comes out: scandal – not positive words. It’s that we
have to change first and try to improve
the image of Fifa. Football deserves
much better than this.”
Figo joins Asian Football Confederation
vice-president Prince Ali bin Al Hussein,
Dutch football chief Michael van Praag,
ex-Fifa executive
that something
Jerome Chamhas to be done,”
pagne and former
added Figo, who
France winger
won the Ballon
David Ginola in
d’Or in 2000 and
the running to
was voted Fifa
unseat Blatter,
World Player-ofwho will bid for
the-Year in 2001.
a fifth term in
“Last
year
office in the May
was the World
n Figo and, right, Blatter
29 election.
Cup, I was in
The deadline for nominees to an- Brazil and I saw the reaction of all the
nounce their candidature falls today. Figo fans regarding the image of Fifa and I
told CNN he had secured the necessary think something has to be changed.
support from five national football asso“Change in leadership, governance,
ciations, but declined to identify them.
transparency and solidarity, so I think
“I’ve been talking with so many import- it’s the moment for that.”
ant people in football - players, managers,
As one of the most famous footbalpresident of federations - and they all think lers of his generation, Figo is the most
high-profile candidate to have launched
a bid to succeed Blatter.
The 78-year-old Swiss has been tarnished by accusations of corruption stemming from the bidding process for the
2018 and 2022 World Cups, which were
awarded to Russia and Qatar respectively.
Hailing from Lisbon, Figo played for
Sporting Lisbon, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter Milan during a glittering
career.
A skilful, two-footed wide player, he
captained Portugal at the 2006 World
Cup and won a total of 127 caps, making
him his country’s most-capped player.
As well as working as an ambassador
at Inter, he has served on European governing body Uefa’s Football Committee
since 2011.
Guinea and Mali
to draw lots
l Ivory Coast
enter quarters
MONGOMO,
Equatorial
Guinea: Second place in
AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS
Group D at the Africa Cup of
Nations will be decided by a
drawing of lots today after Guinea
and Mali drew 1-1 in Mongomo to
finish joint runners-up.
In last night’s match, Kevin Constant
put Guinea ahead and Modibo Maiga
equalised after Seydou Keita missed a
Mali penalty, leaving the west African
countries level on points, goal difference
and goals scored.
Drawing of lots was last needed at
the Cup of Nations in 1988 with Algeria
progressing to the knockout stage at the
expense of Ivory Coast in Morocco.
Ivory Coast topped the Group D table
thanks to a 1-0 victory over Cameroon
in Malabo through a first-half goal from
Max-Alain Gradel.
The Ivorians will face Algeria Sunday
in the quarter-finals while Ghana await
Guinea or Mali in the other half of a Malabo double-header.
Mali benched Sambou Yatabare and
Bakary Sako – the scorers in draws with
Cameroon and Ivory Coast – for the
match at a packed Estadio de Mongomo
in eastern Equatorial Guinea.
The Eagles were quickly into their
stride with Abdoulaye Diaby firing just
over 65 seconds after the kick-off and
the same player had a close-range effort
deflected for a corner not long after.
But while the pacey Malians were
troubling the Guineans, the Syli Nationale (national elephant) took the lead on
15 minutes from a Constant penalty.
The Tunisian referee initially waved play
on when an Ibrahima Traore shot struck
the arm of Salif Coulibaly, but changed his
mind after hearing from his assistant.
GROUP D
1
Cameroon
(Gradel 35)
Guinea
1
Mali
(Constant 15-pen) (Maiga 47)
Ivory Coast
I. Coast
Guinea
Mali
Cameroon
P
3
3
3
3
W
1
0
0
0
D
2
3
3
2
0
1
L GF GA PT
0
3
2 5
0
3
3 3
0
3
3 3
1
2
3 2
Note: Ivory Coast have qualified for the
quarter-finals. Drawing of lots today will
decide whether Guinea or Mali finish runners-up and qualify.
n Cameroon’s Nicolas Nkoulou, right, challenges Ivory Coast’s Wilfried Bony
Former AC Milan midfielder Constant was ultra-cool in the 25-degree (77
fahrenheit) heat as he stroked the ball
into the middle of the net after Germain
Berthe dived left.
Just three minutes later Mali had a
great chance to equalise only for talisman and former Barcelona midfielder
Keita to fluff his penalty.
Baissama Sankoh handled a fierce
cross from Modibo Maiga and Keita
slotted the spot-kick timidly into the
arms of goalkeeper Naby Yattara.
It was a rare dark moment for
35-year-old AS Roma attacker Keita,
who played pivotal roles in his country
finishing third at the last two Cup of Nations tournaments.
“Seydou, Seydou, Seydou,” was the
encouraging chant of the large section
of the crowd at the 15,000-seat stadium
backing the Malians.
Quicksilver Diaby was a continuous
threat and Yattara did well to tip his sizzling shot over the crossbar for a corner.
The Malian attacker turned provider
two minutes into the second half as the
Eagles deservedly drew level through
former West Ham United striker Maiga.
Diaby burst down the right and his
cross drifted over a Guinean defender,
leaving Maiga to nod past Yattara from
point-blank range at the far post.
Guinea were under continual pressure and suffered a major blow just past
the hour when inspirational Traore was
forced to retire injured with Seydouba
Soumah coming on and Constant taking
over as captain.
Spurs to face Chelsea in League Cup final
Christian
Eriksen was Tottenham
Hotspur’s ice-man as
they suppressed a late
revival from third-tier Sheffield
United to reach the League Cup
final 3-2 on aggregate last night.
Tottenham, who will face
Chelsea in the final at Wembley on March 1, appeared to be
cruising when they took a firsthalf lead through Eriksen’s stunning free kick which took their
LONDON:
aggregate advantage to 2-0.
Sheffield United teenager Che
Adams came off the bench, however, to turn the tie on its head
with two goals in two minutes,
giving his team a 2-1 lead and
levelling the aggregate score.
Eriksen ensured four-times
winners Spurs avoided playing
extra time when he found space
on the edge of the lower league
side’s box with two minutes remaining and calmly slotted home.
Eriksen’s opener on 28 minutes was a moment of supreme
quality.
The Dane whipped a stunning free kick from the right
side of the area into the far top
corner off the post with the
hosts’ keeper Mark Howard
rooted to the spot.
The lower league side, whose
cup pedigree has upset five Premier League sides in the last 12
months, laboured to claw a way
back into the match, but the
more they pushed on the likelier it looked that Spurs would
add to their tally.
Yet two minutes of madness
turned the tie around and left
Tottenham facing a scrap they
would not have seen coming.
Adams came off the bench
on 74 minutes and kept his
head to finish calmly past Vorm
with his instep, sparking the
home crowd into life and add-
ing spice to a cup tie that had
seemed to be heading to a predictable conclusion.
His second goal had an element of good fortune as his
deflected effort from the edge
of the area looped away from
Spurs keeper Vorm.
With their tails up, United
looked favourites to grab the
winner, but their hopes of a
reaching a first final were dashed
by Eriksen’s precise finish.
Neymar double
sends Barcelona
into semi-finals
BARCELONA: Neymar
struck twice as Barcelona
came from behind to seal
a 3-2 victory over nine-man
Atletico Madrid and reach the
King’s Cup semi-finals 4-2 on
aggregate last night.
Fernando Torres put Atletico
ahead inside the first minute with
a precise strike from the edge of
the area but Barca have clicked
into form recently and hit back
quickly through Neymar.
Atletico were awarded a controversial penalty when Javier
Mascherano was adjudged to
have fouled Juanfran Torres
and Raul Garcia restored their
advantage on the half hour with
the spot-kick.
Miranda put the ball into his
own net as he attempted to clear
a corner which had been flicked
on by Sergio Busquets and in
a lightning attack from Barca
Jordi Alba found Neymar in the
area and the Brazilian finished
clinically.
There were heated exchanges throughout the match with
plenty at stake and it boiled
over at halftime with Atletico
midfielder Gabi Fernandez sent
off following a confrontation in
the tunnel.
Mario Suarez was also dismissed six minutes from the
end after receiving his second
yellow card.
Barca will face the winners
of Getafe and Villarreal who
play on Thursday with the latter
leading 1-0 from the first leg.
Athletic Bilbao are at home
to Malaga having drawn 0-0 in
the first leg and Espanyol travel
to Sevilla leading 3-1.
n Bubka to challenge
Coe for IAAF presidency
KIEV: Ukrainian pole vault legend
Sergei Bubka will challenge
Britain’s Sebastian Coe for the
presidency of the International
Association of Athletics Federations
(IAAF), he confirmed yesterday.
The two men are the only candidates
so for to succeed Lamine Diack,
who is due to step down in August.
An IAAF council member since
2001 and vice-president since
2007, Bubka set 35 world pole
vault records in a glittering career
which brought him an Olympic
gold in the colours of the Soviet
Union in 1988 and six consecutive
world championships from 1983 to
1997, three of them for Ukraine.
Former middle distance star Coe,
who headed the London 2012
Olympic organising committee,
threw his hat into the ring in
November with a pledge to attract
more young people to the sport
and crack down on the scourge of
doping.
Diack, 81, has been president
since succeeding Primo Nebiolo
in 1999 but will retire this year
and the vote for his successor will
take place at the IAAF Congress
in Beijing.
n Chelsea’s Costa charged
LONDON: Chelsea striker
Diego Costa faces a three-game
suspension after being charged
with violent conduct for appearing
to stamp on Liverpool’s Emre
Can, the Football Association
announced yesterday.
Costa seemed to deliberately
stand on Can’s ankle in the 12th
minute of Tuesday’s League Cup
semi-final second leg at Stamford
Bridge, which Chelsea won 1-0 to
complete a 2-1 aggregate victory.
The incident was missed by the
match officials and reviewed by a
video panel yesterday.