20/08/2025

SPORTS WEDNESDAY | AUG 20, 2025

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Real Warriors throw down gauntlet

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE: Leeds United 1 (Nmecha 84-pen) Everton 0. LA LIGA: Elche 1 (Valera 81) Real Betis 1 (Ruibal 21) . RESULTS SHORTS German FA opens racist abuse investigation THE German Football Federation (DFB) has opened an investigation into alleged racist abuse incidents at two German Cup matches, the German football governing body said yesterday after Fifa president Gianni Infantino condemned the incidents. The alleged racial abuse incidents occurred on Sunday in the first round of DFB Cup matches, during second-tier Schalke 04’s 1-0 win away at fourth-tier Lokomotiv Leipzig and during second tier Kaiserslautern’s 7-0 win away at fifth-tier RSV Eintracht. DFB president Bernd Neuendorf said,“We stand for diversity and respect, and alongside those affected as well as those who stand up for our values. Accordingly, the DFB control committee has opened investigations following the two German Cup matches on Sunday.” The match at Lokomotiv Leipzig was halted in the 13th minute when Schalke midfielder Christopher Antwi-Adjei reported racist insults from the crowd to the assistant referee. Antwi Adjei, who is a Ghana international, was born in Germany. The game was stopped for about three minutes before the stadium announcer urged supporters to stop using racist or discriminatory language. At RSV Eintracht, a Kaiserslautern substitute player warming up on the touchline was allegedly targeted by racist insults from the crowd midway through the second half of their 7-0 win. The club did not name the player in their statement. Doak joins Liverpool exodus SCOTLAND international winger Ben Doak has joined Bournemouth in a deal worth up to £25 million (RM145m), taking Liverpool’s tally from player sales beyond £200 million (RM1.16b) during this transfer window. The 19-year-old, who joined from Celtic for just £600,000 (RM3.4m) in 2022, made only 10 appearances for the Liverpool first team. Doak impressed during a loan spell at second tier Middlesbrough and picked up six caps at international level last season. The BBC reported that Bournemouth will pay an initial £20m with a further £5m in add-ons. “I feel like it’s the right time for me and it’s a great opportunity to play regular football at the highest level. It feels like the perfect fit,” said Doak. “The team play very nice football. It’s fast and it really suits my game, so I felt like I couldn’t say no to the chance to play here.” Doak follows Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Caoimhin Kelleher, Jarell Quansah and Tyler Morton in leaving the Premier BORUSSIA DORTMUND needed a superb finish by forward Serhou Guirassy in the 79th minute to break the resistance of third-division club Rot-Weiss Essen and earn a nervous 1-0 victory in the German Cup yesterday. Dortmund found it hard going in their first competitive game of the season against the disciplined Essen backline, who were working overtime to keep the visitors’ chances to a minimum. The hosts almost took the lead themselves in the 41st minute but Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel denied Romien Safi from close range. Essen remained bold after the break, stifling most Dortmund attacks early while lurking on the break. But they could do nothing when Guinea international Guirassy picked up the ball at the edge of the box, battled with two Essen defenders before unleashing an unstoppable, low drive past the keeper for a 79th minute lead. League champions in recent months. Guirassy stars for Dortmund

KELANTAN The Real Warriors (Kelantan TRW) started their FA Cup campaign on the right foot when they defeated KL City FC (KL City) 3 1 at the Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium in Kota Bharu on Monday night. The Real Warriors made the most of their home ground advantage, scoring in the fifth minute courtesy of Ifedayo Omosuyi. Twelve minutes later, Ifedayo celebrated his second goal of the match. The East coast team then extended their lead in the second half through Sean Selvaraj in the 65th minute, while KL City managed a consolation goal in the 86th minute by Syamer Kutty Abba. TRW head coach E. Elavarasan said the 3-1 victory was not entirely comfortable, as his team will travel to the opponent’s stadium for the second leg of the FA Cup in mid

can happen. We need a 2-0 win to turn things around and secure qualification for the next round. I believe in the players’ ability – they can do what it takes to win,” he said. Speaking about the match, Vidakovic said his team’s performance was unsatisfactory, given their squad strength. “We didn’t play that well, especially in the first half. We need to make changes if we want to qualify for the next round. We must play to our full potential at home,” said Vidakovic. The Bosnia and Herzegovina-born manager was gracious in defeat and candid about his team’s performance. “I was definitely expecting a game like this. If you lose focus for just a moment, it will affect the whole game. That’s what happened to us. We didn’t exist in the first half.” – Bernama/Agencies

September. “Usually in the FA Cup, winning by a large margin in the first leg does not give players the chance to sit back and relax, because we still have to face the same opponent on their home ground in the second leg. Any result can happen when we are away,” he said at a press conference after the match. Elavarasan urged his players to stay focused and prepare for their upcoming Super League match against Sabah FC on Saturday, noting that they still have nearly a month before facing KL City FC again in the FA Cup second leg. Meanwhile, KL City FC head coach Vidakovic Risto said that despite the defeat, his team has not given up hope of advancing to the next round of the FA Cup this season. “We still have 90 minutes left; any result

NSFC shoot down Cops Negeri Sembilan hit five past 10-man PDRM N EGERI SEMBILAN FC (NSFC) are likely to advance to the quarterfinal stage of the 2025 FA Cup after they beat PDRM FC 5-0 in the first leg of the Round of 16 at Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi on Monday night. complete the rout. NSFC head coach Mohd Nidzam Jamil hailedhis team’s resounding victory but said there is still room for improvement. He said the 5-0 thrashing of PDRM was a good result but cautioned his squad against getting carried away.

maintain their consistency and emerge as a squad to reckon with this season. “I am not fully satisfied; what happened on the pitch and the result we achieved are two different things. I feel we still need to play much better in the future,” he said. On the upcoming Super League clash against Selangor FC on Sunday, Nidzam said there are still many aspects that need improvement in the few days leading up to the match. PDRM head coach Eddy Gapil accepted the defeat, saying his side found it difficult to recover after one of their players was sent off in the first half. “It wasn’t easy playing with 10 players for 80 minutes. I admit it was due to the mistakes and

NSFC showed their dominance by scoring in the first minute courtesy of a freekick by Jovan Motika from outside the penalty box and things got better when PDRM FC were forced to play with only 10 men when Agbre Noel received a red card for a foul on Joseph Esso in the ninth minute. Even with the one

“This is just the beginning. We still have a long way to go, with many things to fix. But it is a good result. I believe that given time, we can be even better,” he told reporters after the match. He hoped that his team c o u l d

player advantage, the home team would have to wait till nearly the end of the first half to score their second goal through Motika in the 40th minute, and then a third by Esso just before the half time whistle blew. PDRM failed

negligence of our defenders.

“The matter (being shown a red card) happened in a quick period of time and it was quite difficult for the players to recover immediately when Negeri Sembilan were seen to be putting on an aggressive performance and successfully creating many chances in our goal area. “Although we are

to make any h e a dwa y , being kept on the defensive in the second half, and NSFC

had little trouble extending their lead, scoring their fourth goal via substitute Mio Tsuneyasu in the 76th minute before Esso scored the fifth goal t h r e e minutes later to

N. Sembilan player Muhammad Anwar Ibrahim (left) vie for the ball with PDRM’s Kyaw Min Oo in the FA Cup match. – BERNAMAPIC

disappointed, we have to accept this defeat with an open heart, but the PDRM players must receive the credit they deserve because they gave high commitment and

tried their best to come back and score goals,” said Eddy. –Bernama

Video analysis part of Henry’s game plan NATIONAL men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi has made video analysis a key approach to fine-tune his charges’ strategy for the 2025 Badminton Championship in Paris set to begin on Aug 25. Badminton Malaysia (ABM) in Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur yesterday. “This process helps us uncover minor differences that can be crucial for achieving victory on match day.

and professional pair Goh Sze Fei -Nur Izzuddin Rumsani at the upcoming 2025 Badminton Championship. Herry also had hopes that world No. 7 pair Wei Chong-Kai Wun could get past the quarterfinal stage, to set a potential match against the world’s top-ranked South Korean pair, Kim Won Ho-Seung Jae, after their quarterfinal exit at the recent Japan Open. The Indonesian-born coach also said that the national squad’s preparations were disrupted following Wan Arif’s bout of fever, but said Arif’s condition is now recovering. – Bernama

“We cannot rely on outdated analysis, as players can improve through training, therefore, we need to focus on the most recent data, such as the results from the Japan Open and China Open held last month,” he said. Malaysia will field its largest contingent of pairs, featuring four men’s doubles teams: Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun, Wan Arif Wan Junaidi-Yap Roy King,

The approach helps to identify not only the strengths and weaknesses of opponents but also areas where his players can improve before stepping onto court, he said. “I usually use video analysis to discuss our game plan against opponents with the players, and from this discussion, we can identify which aspects need improvement,” he said during a training session at the Akedemi