02/12/2025

SPORTS TUESDAY | DEC 2, 2025

29

Big blow for Alonso Madrid title hopes dented at Girona in third straight draw

Hamburg leave it late, Frankfurt salvage draw FABIO VIEIRA scored in the final minute of stoppage time to give 10-man Hamburg a 2-1 win at home to Stuttgart in the Bundesliga yesterday. Hamburg’s first win since early October took them four points clear of the relega tion spots. Former Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi converted a stoppage-time penalty to spare Eintracht Frankfurt’s blushes in a 1-1 draw at home to lowly Wolfsburg. Robert Glatzel put promoted Hamburg in front midway through the opening half, blasting in a right-footed shot after Alexander Rossing-Lelesiit cleverly beat three defenders in midfield before laying on the assist. Former Brighton striker Deniz Undav had Stuttgart level early in the second-half, pouncing to tap in the rebound from a well hit Jamie Leweling shot for his sixth goal in three league games. Reduced to 10 men when Rossing Lelesiit picked up a second yellow with nine minutes remaining, Stuttgart were caught upfield pushing for a winner when Fabio Balde released Arsenal loanee Vieira to score from close range. Glatzel praised the “unbelievable” home fans in Hamburg’s 57,000-strong Volksparkstadion for helping push the side to victory. “The atmosphere here is so unique. I’ve seen it here before, but it’s always some thing truly special” he said. Wolfsburg had lost eight of their previ ous nine but were the better side in Frankfurt and should have opened the scoring when Mohamed Amoura some how chipped a pinpoint Christian Eriksen cross over the bar. With 66 minutes gone, Sael Kumbedi looped a delightful cross across the face of goal to Aaron Zehnter, who volleyed through Frankfurt goalkeeper Michael Zetterer’s legs for the opener. In the fourth minute of stoppage time, a VAR review showed a foul on Arthur Theate in the box, earning Frankfurt a penalty. Belgium forward Batshuayi converted to snatch a draw but the point was not enough to lift Frankfurt past sixth-placed Stuttgart and back into the European plac ings. – AFP

R EAL MADRID were held to a third con secutive La Liga draw in a 1-1 tie at Girona yesterday, allowing Barcelona to retain pole position. Azzedine Ounahi fired the hosts into a surprise lead before half-time, with Kylian Mbappe earning Madrid a point from the penalty spot. After Barcelona beat Alaves on Saturday to move top of the table, Madrid needed a victory at Girona to reclaim top spot but now sit second, a point behind the champions. Earlier Alberto Moleiro helped Villarreal, third, move back ahead of fourth-place Atletico Madrid with a stoppage time winner in a 3-2 victory at Real Sociedad. Real Madrid’s draw increases the pressure on Madrid coach Xabi Alonso, after recent rumours suggesting his future is insecure in the Madrid dugout. “We are up there, it’s all very even, it’s a long sea son and we have to continue,” Alonso t o l d

Arda Guler fired off target for Madrid early on in a hotly-contested but scrappy clash, in front of a rau cous home crowd. French superstar Mbappe had a goal ruled out for handball moments before Morocco interna tional Ounahi fired Girona ahead, rifling home from just inside the area to stun their illustrious visitors. Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made a stunning save to tip away Vanat’s drive across goal before Los Blancos fought back. After having a goal disallowed for offside Vinicius was clumsily felled in the box by Hugo Rincon. Mbappe smashed the resulting penalty into the bottom left corner past Gazzaniga’s dive for his 14th La Liga goal of the campaign. “Absolutely not the result we wanted tonight, but the league is still on and very long,” wrote Mbappe on social media network Instagram . “We need to change this dynamic and show who we are as a team.” Villarreal playmaker Moleiro netted twice in the second half of a thrilling game in San Sebastian. Villarreal secured their fifth consecutive league win to stay firmly in the Spanish title fight. Ayoze Perez sent the visitors ahead mid way through the first half and teed up Moleiro for Villarreal’s second soon after the break. Real Sociedad fought back strongly, with Carlos Soler netting on the hour mark. The Basque side ramped up the pressure and levelled in the final stages through a spectacular Ander Barrenetxea freekick. However, Moleiro had the final say, fir ing home in the 95th minute to maintain his team’s momentum. “We had that little bit of luck to get three very important points, as important as they were difficult (to get),” said Marcelino. “To get 32 points out of a pos sible 42 to me seems a stunning achievement.” – AFP Girona’s Azzedine Ounahi (left) in action with Real Madrid players during yesterday’s La Liga match at the Estadi Montilivi. – REUTERSPIC

reporters. “I liked the reaction from the players. It was not enough to turn it around but we were close, and we have to continue with the unity we have, being self critical enough, and wanting to win away from home.” Madrid travel to face Athletic Bilbao on Thursday for a fourth consecutive league match on the road, a game moved because of the club’s par ticipation in the Spanish Super Cup in January. “The table will be hard-fought, there will be lots of move ment,” added Alonso. Mbappe and

Napoli join Milan at Serie A summit

Lens go top for 1st time in 21 years FLORIAN THAUVIN scored a brace to fire Lens to the top of the French Ligue 1 table with a 2-1 victory at Angers yesterday.

that wrong-footed Zinga. But just three minutes later, Harouna Djibirin gave the hosts a lifeline, slotting home the rebound after Lens goalkeeper Robin Risser pulled off a fine save to deny Prosper Peter. Lens had VAR to thank for holding onto the victory as the television match official overturned a late penalty award to Angers. It was a fourth straight league win for Lens and seventh in their last eight matches. Elsewhere, Moroccan Hamza Igamane scored the winner two minutes from time to send Lille up to fourth with a 1-0 success at Le Havre. Strasbourg missed the chance to move fifth as they lost 2-1 at home to Brest. Lowly Lorient moved out of the relega tion zone as two goals from Senegalese for ward Sambou Soumano helped them to a 3-1 success over out-of-sorts Nice, who lost for the sixth time in a row in all competi tions. Although they sit 10th in the 18-team Ligue 1, Nice coach Franck Haise insisted they are now in a relegation dog fight. That is certainly the case for third-from bottom Nantes after they lost 3-0 at Lyon, who are sixth after Uruguayan Martin Satriano’s brace – his first goals in Ligue 1. – AFP

NAPOLI joined AC Milan at the top of Serie A yester day after winning 1-0 at title rivals Roma, as Inter Milan kept pace with the leading pair by beating Pisa 2-0. David Neres stroked home the only goal of a feisty game in the 36th minute at the Stadio Olimpico, end ing a blistering counter-attack with a calm finish which put Napoli on 28 points. Napoli are behind Milan on goal difference and just one point ahead of both Roma and Inter Milan in a tight Scudetto battle, in which Antonio Conte’s team will host Juventus in a week’s time. “To come to Rome and play with authority and per sonality like we did wasn’t easy because Roma came into the game on the back on some positive results,” said Conte to DAZN . “We’ve sent a message to ourselves, that if we want it we can have it.” Bologna will move level with Roma and Inter if they beat Cremonese overnight and Vincenzo Italiano’s team could have their say in the destination of the title which they last won in 1964. Roma have been waiting 24 years to be crowned kings of Italy and yesterday’s defeat was already their third against a direct rival this season after also being beaten by the two Milan clubs. Napoli have bounced back from a meltdown before the last international break and put in a classic away performance, denying Roma any real chances and pouncing at the first opportunity. Conte had to do without Kevin De Bruyne, Andre

Frank Anguissa and Billy Gilmour – as well as long term absentee Romelu Lukaku – but has found an effective attacking recipe with Neres and Noa Lang, who buzzed around centre-forward Rasmus Hojlund. It was Hojlund who burst forward and perfectly slipped in Neres for his third goal of the season, while robust defending kept Roma away from Vanja Milinkovic-Savic’s goal. Roma offered little in reply, failing to break through Napoli’s backline until the 90th minute, when Milinkovic-Savic did enough to keep out Tommaso Baldanzi’s low drive from the edge of the area. “What is disappointing is that we weren’t able to perform with the right rhythm, and I think we paid a bit for playing on Thursday,” said Roma coach Gian Piero Gasperini. “We weren’t quick enough and when you take too many touches, the ball moves slower and it becomes more difficult.” Lautaro Martinez smashed home Pio Esposito’s low cross in the 69th minute and then ensured Inter would claim the points when he tapped in from close range with seven minutes remaining. “I’m happy because we won and that’s what we wanted after two defeats… I work for the team, myself and my family, I leave the talk to others,” said Martinez to DAZN . “I hope it continues, I’ve still got plenty of time on my contract, I’m happy here and the fans love me… the team comes before everything else.” – AFP

Victory took Lens a point clear of reign ing French and European champions Paris Saint-Germain, who lost surprisingly 1-0 at Monaco on Saturday. Marseille could also have taken over top spot this weekend but were held to a 2-2 home draw by Toulouse and sit third. It is the first time that Lens have been top of Ligue 1 since August 2004, but coach Pierre Sage was not getting carried away. “We’re very happy that it’s happened, but despite everything, on a CV, being top after 14 matches doesn’t secure you a job, I would imagine,” he said. “We’re going to aim to keep progressing, to manage our matches better so that we don’t feel at the end that everything is diffi cult for 10 or 12 minutes,” he added, criticis ing his team for having wobbled when lead ing 2-0. Former Newcastle United flop Thauvin opened the scoring for Lens on the stroke of half-time with a rocket-like left-footed strike that gave Angers’s Congolese goalkeeper Melvin Zinga no chance. Thauvin, 32, who spent much of his career at Marseille, added the second 17 minutes from time with a deflected shot