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Mbappe double at Villarreal takes Real Madrid top

VILA-REAL, Spain: Kylian Mbappe’s brace helped Real Madrid climb top of La Liga with a 2-1 win at Villarreal on Saturday. Los Blancos moved three points clear of rivals Barcelona, having played two extra games, with the Catalans visiting third place Atletico Madrid on Sunday in a key clash in the Spanish title race. Madrid were unhappy the game was taking place fewer than 72 hours after their Champions League win on penalties against Atletico on Wednesday. However despite their complaints they had enough in the tank to beat their opponents, fifth, at the Estadio de la Ceramica. Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti began with Vinicius Junior on the bench after the draining victory against Atletico in the last 16. Villarreal started strongly and Thibaut Courtois got down well to his right to tip Ayoze Perez’s shot around the post. From the resulting corner Villarreal took the lead, with the ball rebounding to Foyth, who smashed home from close range. Ancelotti’s side hit back quickly, with Mbappe levelling after 17 minutes. Brahim Diaz’s attempted lob was saved by Diego Conde, but the French striker dispatched the rebound with minimal fuss. Soon Mbappe had his second, helping to spread the ball to the right and then finishing with aplomb after Lucas Vazquez found him in the middle of the box. It was Mbappe’s 20th league goal of the season, putting him one behind the top scorer, Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski. Content with their lead Madrid soaked up Villarreal pressure in the rest of the first half, with Courtois saving well from Nicolas Pepe. Villarreal coach Marcelino Garcia Toral sent on Thierno Barry for Pepe at the break, as the Yellow Submarine looked to avoid a first home defeat in La Liga by Madrid since 2017. Foyth might

New Zealand vs Pakistan Live Streaming, 1st T20I Live Telecast: When And Where To Watch

New Zealand vs Pakistan Live Telecast: Michael Bracewell will captain New Zealand for the first time on home soil when they meet Pakistan in a five-game T20 series, leading a squad missing several key players because of the IPL. Bracewell starred as the Blackcaps reached the final of the Champions Trophy and is one of seven players from that one-day team selected for the T20s. But a host of top names are not available due to Indian Premier League commitments, including regular skipper Mitchell Santner, along with Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson and Glenn Phillips. Kane Williamson also made himself unavailable for the series, which gets under way on Sunday in Christchurch.

Barca’s Flick demands ‘focus’ ahead of crunch Atletico clash

BARCELONA: Hansi Flick warned his Barcelona stars they need to focus to avoid crumbling against Atletico Madrid on Sunday in La Liga as they have in their previous two meetings this season. Leaders Barcelona are a point ahead of Diego Simeone’s Atletico, third, going into the huge title clash at the Metropolitano stadium in the Spanish capital. Barcelona led against Atletico in the first league match in December but Rodrigo De Paul levelled for the visitors and Alexander Sorloth hit a 96th minute winner which helped them usurp the Catalans at the top of the table. Then in the Copa del Rey semifinal first leg Barcelona let in two goals in the first six minutes and two late goals, including another Sorloth stoppage time strike in a wild 4-4 draw. “I think we have had really two great matches and of course we have to be focussed from begninning to the end of the match,” Flick told reporters Saturday. “I think in the first match, at the end of the match we were not so focussed like we can be, and also the second match was (the same) in the beginning and also at the end, so we have to take care about that. “When you make mistakes Atletico can hurt you and this is what we have to defend against.” Atletico Madrid were knocked out of the Champions League on Wednesday on penalties by rivals Real Madrid, while Barcelona beat Benfica to reach the quarter-finals. Former Manchester City striker Julian Alvarez scored a penalty in the shoot-out for Atletico which was controversially disallowed because he may have touched the ball twice when he slipped as he took it. “It was an unlucky situation, I feel for him, he’s one of the best strikers,” said Flick, adding that it was “not a problem” for Atletico to have played 120 minutes

Bayern held at Union Berlin to leave title door ajar

BERLIN: Bayern Munich were held to a 1-1 draw at Union Berlin on Saturday, giving defending champions Bayer Leverkusen an outside chance of dragging themselves back into the Bundesliga title race. Bayern, who also dropped points in a surprise loss at home to Bochum last week, could be just six points ahead if Leverkusen win at Stuttgart on Sunday. Bayern had most of the ball but struggled to break through a resolute Union defense. With few chances in the opening period, Bayern’s best chance came after 51 minutes when Harry Kane drilled a free-kick through the wall but into the palms of Frederik Ronnow. Leroy Sane put the visitors ahead after 75 minutes when he skated through a crowded penalty area to tap in a Josip Stanisic pass. Union were however the better team after the goal and the hosts levelled through Benedict Hollerbach, who was on the spot to take advantage of an error from rookie goalkeeper Jonas Urbig. Union rose in intensity in the dying stages but were unable to land the killer blow which would have seen them beat Bayern for the first time in their history, on their 12th attempt. Despite hovering dangerously close to the relegation spots for much of the season, Union have a strong record at home against the league’s best sides. Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Eintracht Frankfurt, Mainz, Freiburg and now Bayern have all left Berlin without winning. Unlikely Champions League candidates Mainz and Freiburg drew 2-2 draw.

Man City held by Brighton to leave Champions League hopes in balance

MANCHESTER: Manchester City twice blew the lead in a 2-2 draw against Brighton on Saturday as Abdukodir Khusanov’s own goal dented their bid to qualify for the Champions League. Pep Guardiola’s side led through Erling Haaland’s early penalty at the Etihad Stadium. But Pervis Estupinan hauled Brighton level and, although Omar Marmoush restored City’s lead just before the interval, the Seagulls levelled again in the second half thanks to Khusanov’s mistake. City remain in fifth place in the Premier League, one point behind fourth-placed Chelsea, who visit Arsenal on Sunday, and one point ahead of Newcastle and seventh-placed Brighton. The top four are guaranteed a Champions League place, while fifth is also likely to be enough depending on the result of the English clubs remaining in European competitions this term. Reduced to fighting for a Champions League berth after a shockingly bad season, City are still far from certain to qualify for Europe’s elite club competition. That would have been unthinkable just 12 months ago, when City were marching toward a fourth consecutive English title and a sixth in seven years. Since losing 7-0 at Nottingham Forest, Brighton had reeled off four consecutive league wins and this was another impressive display from Fabian Hurzeler’s side, who still harbor genuine hopes of reaching the Champions League for the first time. Guardiola made four changes from the 1-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest as Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva, Ederson and Matheus Nunes were replaced by Marmoush, Ilkay Gundogan, Stefan Ortega and Rico Lewis. City won a penalty in the 11th minute when Haaland found Marmoush in the Brighton area and the Egyptian was brought down by Adam Webster. Haaland took the spot-kick, firing

Watch: Virat Kohli Joins Royal Challengers Bengaluru Squad Ahead Of IPL 2025

Star batter and former captain Virat Kohli joined the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) squad on Saturday ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. In a video shared by the franchise on social media, Kohli can be seen posing in an RCB jersey with the caption reading, "The King is here and like always, he's 2 steps (sometimes a LOT more) ahead of everyone." Kohli was in sublime touch during India's title-winning campaign in the ICC Champions Trophy in Dubai last week. Rohit Sharma-led side defeated New Zealand in the final to claim their third tournament title.

"People Won't Come...": Pakistan Cricket Team Receives Grim Warning

Former Pakistan cricket team all-rounder Imad Wasim has blasted the team's performance in the Champions Trophy 2025 and even said that it was the 'right way' to play cricket. Pakistan did not win a single match as they were eliminated from the competition in the group stages. The tournament led to a lot of criticism - both from experts as well as fans - as they took aim at the cricketers as well as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials. In a video going viral on social media, Imad was seen criticising the national team and he said that he does not feel like watching the Pakistan team play anymore.

'Pakistan Pacers Are Good, Not The Best': England World Cup Winner's Brutal Verdict

Former England cricket team all-rounder Moeen Ali believes that the current Pakistan fast bowlers are good but they are not the best in the world. In a recent interaction, Moeen called the trio of Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah talented but made it clear that when it comes to the best in the world, they are not at the top of the list. In a podcast alongside Adil Rashid, Moeen said that people with Pakistani backgrounds tend to claim that the pace trio is the best in the world but that is not the case. "There's this perception, especially among people with Pakistani backgrounds, that Pakistan has the best seamers. I'm like, no. They're good, but they're not the best," Moeen said.

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Pakistan Sport News

Mbappe double at Villarreal takes Real Madrid top

New Zealand vs Pakistan Live Streaming, 1st T20I Live Telecast: When And Where To Watch

Barca’s Flick demands ‘focus’ ahead of crunch Atletico clash

Bayern held at Union Berlin to leave title door ajar

Man City held by Brighton to leave Champions League hopes in balance

Watch: Virat Kohli Joins Royal Challengers Bengaluru Squad Ahead Of IPL 2025

"People Won't Come...": Pakistan Cricket Team Receives Grim Warning

'Pakistan Pacers Are Good, Not The Best': England World Cup Winner's Brutal Verdict