World Sports News in Brief

Barca title bid on rocks as Atletico upstage Messi's 700th goal

Barcelona gave up more ground to Real Madrid in La Liga’s title race on Tuesday (June 30) after being held to a 2-2 draw at home to third-placed Atletico Madrid as a late penalty from Saul Niguez cancelled out Lionel Messi’s 700th career goal.

Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - FC Barcelona v Atletico Madrid - Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain - June 30, 2020  Barcelona's Lionel Messi in action with Sevilla's Ever Banega, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease. (Photo: Reuters)
Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - FC Barcelona v Atletico Madrid - Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain - June 30, 2020 Barcelona's Lionel Messi in action with Sevilla's Ever Banega, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease. (Photo: Reuters)

The draw meant the Catalans stayed second in the standings on 70 points and leaders Real Madrid, who have 71, will go four points clear at the top with five games left if they beat Getafe at home on Thursday.

* American Chad Campbell has tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the sixth PGA Tour golfer to do so, the Tour said on Tuesday. Campbell withdrew from this week's Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit, Michigan, where he was slated to be a first alternate, and said he would quarantine himself until he has made a full recovery.

* Emmanuel Adebayor has left Olimpia after less than five months at the club due to complications thrown up by the new coronavirus, the Paraguayan side said on Tuesday. The 36-year old has been at home in Togo for much of the coronavirus pandemic and the club said his return to Paraguay posed significant health and safety problems.

* AS Roma have reached a "preliminary agreement" to extend midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan's loan deal from Arsenal until the end of next season, the Serie A club said on Tuesday. Mkhitaryan, 31, joined the Italians at the start of the season after a disappointing 18-month spell at Premier League club Arsenal following a swap deal in January 2018 which saw Chile forward Alexis Sanchez move to Manchester United.

* Real Mallorca breathed life into their La Liga survival hopes by thrashing Celta Vigo 5-1 in a relegation tussle on Tuesday, earning victory for the first time since the season returned after the coronavirus stoppage.

* Serie A's leading scorer Ciro Immobile kept up his goal a game average as Lazio came from behind for the second match in a row to beat Torino 2-1 away on Tuesday and maintain the pressure on leaders Juventus.

* Leicester City's matches will go ahead as planned and they will continue to train at their Belvoir Drive facilities despite a stringent lockdown in the city after a spike in local COVID-19 cases, the Premier League club said on Tuesday.

* Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich have reached an agreement with Manchester City to sign winger Leroy Sane in a deal worth 45 million euros (US$50.56 million) plus add-ons, British and German media reported on Tuesday.

* Everton defender Yerry Mina will be available for their Premier League game against Leicester City on Wednesday, while Theo Walcott and Djibril Sidibe are close to making their returns, manager Carlo Ancelotti said on Tuesday. Colombian defender Mina, 25, has missed both of Everton's games since the Premier League's restart after sustaining a muscle injury in training.

* Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to return to the AC Milan squad following a calf muscle injury which has kept him out since the season resumed, coach Stefano Pioli said on Tuesday.

* Next January's Africa Cup of Nations finals in Cameroon have been postponed by one year and will now take place in 2022, the Confederation of African Football decided on Tuesday. The Cup of Nations was due to be held from Jan 9 to Feb 6 next year but will now be scheduled for January 2022.

* Arsenal have little room for error if they are to qualify for European competition next season and will count on their home form to climb up the table, manager Mikel Arteta said on Tuesday. Arsenal, 10th in the standings, have played three consecutive away games since the Premier League's restart this month, while their FA Cup quarter-final win over Sheffield United on Sunday was also away.

* Southend United manager Sol Campbell and his backroom staff have left the club by mutual consent on Tuesday after their relegation to League Two (fourth-tier). Campbell, 45, took over as Southend manager in October last year but won only four of his 23 games in charge.

* Morocco right back Achraf Hakimi is set to join Inter Milan from Real Madrid for 50 million euros (45.71 million pounds) after spending two years on loan at Borussia Dortmund, Spanish newspapers AS and Marca said on Tuesday.

* UEFA currently sees no need for a plan B for the Champions League final tournament due to be held in Lisbon, despite several suburbs of the Portuguese capital preparing to go back into lockdown as coronavirus cases surge again.

* Russian Sergey Sirotkin will be on standby in Austria this weekend after Renault announced on Tuesday they had retained him as their Formula One reserve driver. The role has come into the spotlight more as the sport finally starts its season amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with the possibility of drivers being ruled out by the virus.

* Liverpool defender Joel Matip will miss the remainder of the season due to a foot injury, the Premier League champions said on Tuesday. Centre back Matip, who has been limited to 13 games in all competitions this season, sustained the injury during Liverpool's goalless draw with local rivals Everton earlier this month.

* There will be no extra time in French Cup games as of next season, with the exception of the final, the French football federation said on Tuesday.

* Juventus secured a 3-1 win at lowly Genoa on Tuesday to stay four points clear at the top of Serie A thanks to a solo goal by Paulo Dybala, a long-range rocket from Cristiano Ronaldo and an exquisite curling shot by Douglas Costa. Juve have 72 points from 29 games with Lazio on 68 after their 2-1 win at Torino earlier on Tuesday. Genoa stayed 17th with 26 points, one point and one place above the relegation zone but having played a game more than the bottom three.

* Bruno Fernandes capped a fine individual performance with two goals and Mason Greenwood added another as Manchester United won 3-0 at Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League on Tuesday to stay in the hunt for a top-four finish. Having stretched their unbeaten run in all competitions to 15 games, United climbed back into fifth place on 52 points from 32 games, two behind fourth-placed Chelsea who have a game in hand and ahead of Wolverhampton Wanderers on goal difference.

* Sevilla boosted their chances of qualifying for the Champions League by beating struggling Leganes 3-0 away from home to tighten their grip on fourth place in La Liga and send their opponents tumbling closer to relegation. The victory took fourth-placed Sevilla on to 57 points after 33 games, five ahead of Getafe in fifth, although the Madrid side have a game in hand.

Reuters