09/02/2026

SPORTS MONDAY | FEB 9, 2026

29 Carrick makes Keane look silly M ANCHESTER UNITED interim head coach Michael Carrick praised Red Devils coach Jonny Evans for his role in Bryan Mbeumo’s goal against ing against 10 men, he added: “Mentally we’ve got to treat it the exact same, keep the intensity, keep the quality. I think you’ve just got to manage the game and be sensible in the game.” Jonny Evans, it’s an issue with the club and the decision-making, who they’re bringing in. Jonny Evans left Man United four or five weeks ago. … after the Red Devils sweep Spurs aside

SHORTS Hojlund rescues Napoli

RASMUS HOJLUND’S penalty deep into added-on time snatched a 3-2 victory at Genoa on Saturday and kept champions Napoli hanging on in the Serie A title race. Denmark forward Hojlund scored a brace, taking his record for the season to eight league goals in 20 matches, while fel low former Manchester United player Scott McTominay also found the net at the Luigi Ferraris stadium in northwestern Italy. Victory ensured that Antonio Conte’s injury-hit team remain in third and their second win in a row closed the gap to lead ers Inter Milan to six points. The was more bad news for Conte, though, as McTominay was forced off injured at halftime. The former Italy, Chelsea, Inter and Juventus boss was already without key players such as Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Frank Anguissa and captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo. In the day’s late match, Chilean centre back Guillermo Maripan scored four min utes into added-on time at the end of the game to earn mid-table Torino a 2-2 draw at Fiorentina, who remain in the bottom three. Lens return top of Ligue 1 LENS reclaimed top spot from Paris Saint Germain to keep up their unexpected Ligue 1 title challenge as they beat Rennes 3-1 yesterday to register a 10th successive home win. Lens have won 10 of their last 11 games in the French top flight and hold a one point lead over PSG. However, Lens coach Pierre Sage said he did not consider his team to be in a genuine title race with PSG, and primarily wants to focus on securing European football for next season. “We’re completely distancing ourselves from that,” he said. “We had a points target in mind and once we’ve reached that we can start drawing up other ambitions.” Lyon edged Nantes 1-0 away from home to earn a sixth straight league win that sent them above Marseille and into third place. Pavel Sulc struck the only goal in the first half, with Real Madrid loanee Endrick sent off on the hour for swinging his leg at Dehmaine Tabibou. Nantes have taken just three points from their past eight games and sit in the relegation play-off spot. French Cup quarterfinalists Lorient saw their 12-match unbeaten run in all compe titions ended by a 2-0 loss at Brest. Catalans confirm ESL exit SPANISH GIANTS Barcelona confirmed their withdrawal from the failed breakaway European Super League project yesterday, leaving Real Madrid as the only club still involved. “Barcelona hereby announces that today it has formally notified the European Super League Company and the clubs involved of its withdrawal from the European Super League project,” said the Catalans in a statement. Barca president Joan Laporta said in October 2025 Barcelona wanted to reestab lish links with Uefa, moving away from the project launched by 12 clubs in 2021 which quickly collapsed under the weight of immense fan and institutional pressure. Shortly after the semi-closed Super League project was announced five years ago, the six English clubs involved – Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, Tottenham and Chelsea – withdrew. Four other clubs, Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan, AC Milan and Juventus, followed by 2024, leaving only Barca and Real Madrid still involved in the project championed by Real Madrid president Florentino Perez.

“He left as a summer player and started as a loans manager. He wasn’t there for 10 years doing it. A few months. My issue with Jonny is he’s got no coaching. It’s not as if he worked in the academy for a few years. He comes in with Darren Fletcher and he has very little experience but he’s worked at academy level. Jonny gets a phone call saying: ‘Do you want to come back?.’ “And I bet Jonny’s thinking: ‘As a kit manager or working with the under-12s?.’ No, no, you’re work ing with the first team with Darren. Okay, great opportunity. “You have two games, doesn’t go too well. That’s probably the end of that. No, no. Another manager comes in, he wants you to stay on as well.” – Express Newspapers

Tottenham yesterday. The goal was scored shortly after Spurs defender Cristian Romero was shown a red card in the 29th minute for a dangerous tackle on Casemiro. United responded swiftly with a goal from Mbeumo, following an expertly executed corner routine by Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo. Speaking pitch-side before the start of the sec ond half, Carrick lauded United coach and former Reds defender Evans for his contributions during training. He stated: “Jonny [Evans] had his eye on set plays so it’s great when things come off. Delighted with that.” Regarding their approach to play

Carrick’s praise of Evans comes in the wake of criticism from Roy Keane (pic) . The Irishman criti cised United’s decision to appoint Evans to the club’s first team coaching staff. Despite recognising Evans as a talented player, Keane dismissed the appointment as “jobs for the boys” and indicative of poor decision-making at Old Trafford. Speaking on Sky Sports in January

ahead of the 2-0 victory in the Manchester derby, he remarked: “Jonny Evans rocks up, they’ve signed him twice. “It’s not an issue with

Barca extend La Liga lead

ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI and Lamine Yamal scored as Barcelona eased to a comfortable 3-0 win over Mallorca yesterday to move four points clear at the top of La Liga. The champions extended the gap to Real Madrid in second before Alvaro Arbeloa’s side visit Valencia this morning, with Marc Bernal also on target late on at the partially reopened Camp Nou stadium. Barcelona’s first half display was sluggish, even though Lewandowski’s goal had them ahead at the break. “I was not happy … we were not on our level, the playing and pass ing was too slow,” admitted Flick, who demanded more from his side going forward. “The first half was not how Barca want to play, (but) the second half was much better.” Mallorca target man Vedat Muriqi came close early on as he slid in at the back post but hit the side netting, while Jan Virgili’s shot was saved by Joan Garcia. Marcus Rashford added some urgency into Barca’s game after a listless start, curling inches wide of the far post after cutting in from the left. A blocked shot from the England international led to the opener, with Dani Olmo knocking the rebound to Lewandowski to finish from close range. Rashford’s dangerous freekick

was tipped onto the bar by Mallorca stopper Leo Roman, and Yamal missed from point-blank range as Jules Kounde sent the rebound into his path. The 18-year-old made amends in the second half with a superb shot from outside the area which left Roman with no chance. It was his fourth goal in four games, with Yamal in his best form of the season. “He kept his energy for the sec ond half and the goal. Lamine is fan tastic,” said Flick. At the other end, Garcia earned his clean sheet with a good save to thwart Antonio Sanchez, before Bernal rounded off Barca’s victory. Bernal broke into the first team at the start of last season but a severe knee injury in August 2024 kept him out for around a year and delayed his progress. “It’s a great joy for him, when a player has such a bad injury we all feel it, we suffered with him … I’m very happy for him,” Casado told Movistar . Flick handed 19-year-old mid fielder Tommy Marques his debut late on, as another youngster from the club’s feted La Masia academy made the jump to the first team. In the late match, Real Sociedad moved up a place to eighth, just four points behind Real Betis in fifth, after a 3-1 win at home to Elche. – AFP

Barca’s Lamine Yamal (left) celebrates after scoring the second goal with Marcus Rashford during their La Liga match against Mallorca at the Nou Camp. – REUTERSPIC Late Guirassy winner for Dortmund seals tense win at Wolfsburg

SERHOU GUIRASSY’S late winner gave Borussia Dortmund a tense 2-1 victory at Wolfsburg yester day to provisionally cut Bayern Munich’s lead at the top of the Bundesliga to three points. A fifth consecutive league victory moved Niko Kovac’s side to within a victory of runaway leaders Bayern. After a record-breaking start to the season, the champions are winless in their last two games, giv ing Dortmund the chance to dream of a first title since 2012 with 13 games to go. It was not a vintage display by Dortmund, who suffered a blow pre-match with the news that cap tain Emre Can will be sidelined for another month. But they ground out victory against a Wolfsburg team who have won only once since the turn of the year, thanks to goals by Julian Brandt and Guirassy, each side of a Konstantinos Koulierakis leveller for the hosts. Max Beier almost put Dortmund ahead in the

game unfolded.” Relegation-threatened St Pauli, whose last win was before the winter break, won 2-1 at home to fourth-placed Stuttgart, who had not lost in the league since a 5-0 home drubbing by Bayern on Dec 6. Fifth-placed Bayer Leverkusen failed to capital ise on Stuttgart’s slip as they were held to a 1-1 draw in the late game at Borussia Moenchengladbach. Mainz continued their remarkable turnaround under Swiss strategist Urs Fischer, who has guided Mainz from the bottom of the table to 13th in a matter of weeks, with a 2-0 win over Augsburg. Hamburg also picked up a precious three points, winning their first game on the road this season 2-0 at bottom-placed Heidenheim. Werder Bremen were edged out by a sensa tional solitary strike by Freiburg’s Jan-Niklas Beste to extend their winless streak to 11 games. – AFP

first half but his effort was deflected by Denis Vavro’s last-ditch block onto the underside of the bar. But the Wolves failed to heed that warning when a few minutes later Dortmund went ahead. Julian Ryerson’s 38th-minute corner from the left found Brandt at the near post to nod in. Dortmund’s advantage was erased seven min utes into the second half when Koulierakis chose the perfect moment to score his first goal for Wolfsburg, powering in a header from close range. With 15th-placed Wolfsburg only a few minutes away from securing a precious point, Dortmund produced a silky winner as Guinean Guirassy sup plied a fine left-footed finish in the 87th minute to hand Kovac a winning return to his former club. “It was a brilliantly executed goal,” Brandt said. “That is what individual quality is all about. “We allowed Wolfsburg to believe in the second half. “We are very relieved, considering how the