Barcelona have not cheated, insists chief Laporta
BARCELONA: Barcelona President Joan Laporta insisted Monday his club never tried to cheat amid investigations into payments made to a former refereeing chief.
La Liga Sport News
Injury fears for Giannis, Morant as Lakers, Heat win NBA playoff series openers
LOS ANGELES: Milwaukee superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo and Memphis star guard Ja Morant suffered serious injuries that threatened to disrupt two title contenders on Sunday in NBA playoff series-opening defeats.
Roma consolidate 3rd place in Serie A, shut out Udinese 3-0
MILAN: Roma consolidated third place in Serie A with a 3-0 win over Udinese, who also had a penalty saved on Sunday.
PSG hit by more injuries in final stretch of league season
PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain will be without defender Nordi Mukiele until the end of the season and without midfielder Renato Sanches for several weeks as the race for the French league title enters its final stretch. With eight matches left to play this season, PSG have a six-point lead over second-place Lens after losing five league games since the turn of the year.
Atletico beat Rayo to close in on Real Madrid
BARCELONA: Atletico Madrid cut the gap on second place Real Madrid to just two points with a 2-1 win over 10-man Rayo Vallecano on Sunday in La Liga. Valencia fell to a damaging 2-1 defeat at Almeria which leaves them in the relegation zone, while nine-man Real Betis lost 2-0 at home against Cadiz, denting their bid for Champions League football. Defenders Nahuel Molina and Mario Hermoso struck first-half goals two minutes apart to put Atletico into a dominant position at Vallecas.
Lampard urges Chelsea to emulate 2012 shock run to Euro glory
LONDON: Frank Lampard has urged Chelsea to ignore the turmoil enveloping his struggling side as he invoked the memory of the Blues’ incredible run to Champions League glory in 2012. Lampard is back in charge of Chelsea until the end of the season after replacing the sacked Graham Potter last week. After watching Chelsea crash to a lacklustre 1-0 defeat at Wolves in his first game in charge on Saturday, Lampard takes them to Real Madrid for a daunting Champions League quarter-final first leg on Wednesday.
Leicester appoint Dean Smith as manager until end of season
LONDON: Dean Smith insisted that Leicester can avoid relegation after the Premier League strugglers hired him as their manager until the end of the season on Monday. Former Aston Villa and Norwich boss Smith replaces Brendan Rodgers, who was sacked on April 2 after his side’s slump into relegation trouble. Smith will take charge for Leicester’s last eight games of the campaign as they battle to avoid dropping into the Championship for the first time since 2014.
Barcelona fail to bounce back from Copa Del Rey defeat with Girona stalemate
Barcelona were underwhelming in response to their Copa Del Rey humiliation against Real Madrid as they were held to a goalless draw at home to Girona.