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SPORTSMonday 11 January 2016
Italian Roundup:
Napoli takes its 1st winter title since 1990 championship
ANDREW DAMPF holds a two-point lead in 1990. appeared blinded by the Sammarco then pulled one
AP Sports Writer over Inter Milan, which was “Being winter champion sun. back for Frosinone, a club
ROME (AP) — Napoli is half- beaten 1-0 by Sassuolo ear- means nothing. It means Higuain added a penal- located midway between
way to its first Serie A title lier with a last-minute pen- something when you’re ty on the half-hour mark, Rome and Naples.
since Diego Maradona led alty to surrender the lead. champion in May,” Higuain Marek Hamsik then scored Earlier, Domenico Berardi
the club to the 1990 cham- The winter champion has said. “We’ve got to stay his third goal in three converted the decisive
pionship. gone on to win Serie A calm now because there matches with an impressive spot kick for Sassuolo five
Gonzalo Higuain scored nearly seven out of every are still five months to go solo move after the break, minutes into added time
twice as Napoli routed pro- 10 seasons. and we want to continue before Higuain dribbled after Inter defender Joao
moted Frosinone 5-1 Sun- “We’re still not sure what this way.” past three defenders to Miranda was shown a yel-
day to earn the southern we’re capable of,” Na- Raul Albiol put Napoli score his league-best 18th. low card for a foul on Gre-
team the Italian league’s poli’s first-year manager ahead from close range Substitute Manolo Gab- goire Defrel.
symbolic “winter title.” Maurizio Sarri said. midway through the first biadini added another for Fiorentina is third, three
Through 19 rounds of the The last time Napoli earned half when Frosinone goal- Napoli with a shot from be- points behind, after losing
38-match season, Napoli the mid-term honor came keeper Massimo Zappino yond the area and Paolo 3-1 to Lazio on Saturday.q
English Roundup:
Swansea ousted in 1st big FA Cup shock, Spurs secure replay
Tottenham’s Harry Kanescores a penalty to equalise during the English FA Cup third round soccer Costa and Ruben Loftus- deal with fixture congestion
match between Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City at White Hart Lane in London, Sunday Jan. Cheek. The world’s oldest and to give first-team ac-
10, 2016. knockout competition was tion to fringe players.
short of upsets on Satur- “All credit to Oxford, they
(AP Photo/Tim Ireland) day and an injury-hit Liver- were more energetic than
pool scrambled to secure us and passed the ball bet-
STEVE DOUGLAS tenham needed an 89th- hands of lower-league op- a nervy draw at Exeter on ter,” Swansea manager
AP Sports Writer minute penalty from Harry position in Bradford last Friday. But a surprise finally Alan Curtis said. “We made
MANCHESTER, England (AP) Kane to salvage a 2-2 draw season but had no prob- arrived at Kassam Stadium, changes but we still had
— Swansea was humbled against Leicester on Sun- lems 12 months on, with a where Oxford won 3-2 to lots of experience, but Ox-
by fourth-tier Oxford for day. full-strength team beating leave Swansea to concen- ford thoroughly deserved
the first big shock of the FA Chelsea endured third- third-tier Scunthorpe 2-0 trate on its relegation fight to beat us.” Oxford won the
Cup third round, while Tot- round humiliation at the through goals by Diego in the Premier League. League Cup in 1986 and
Fifty-four places separat- was most recently in Eng-
ed the teams in the Eng- land’s top division in 1988,
lish football pyramid and before dropping down the
Ecuador winger Jefferson leagues and tumbling into
Montero gave an indica- the non-league in 2006.
tion of the supposed differ- “I’ve got to be delighted
ence in class by backheel- beating a Premier League
ing the visitors into the lead side — but not just that, it’s
in the 23rd minute. the way we did it,” Oxford
However, Oxford scored manager Michael Apple-
three goals in 14 minutes ton said.
either side of the halftime Four Premier League teams
break, and Bafetimbi Go- were eliminated Satur-
mis’ 66th-minute reply day, but only after losing
proved only a consolation to fellow top-flight sides. It
for Swansea. looked like Spurs would be
Swansea came unstuck af- joining them, only to earn
ter making 10 changes to a reprieve when Leicester
its lineup — a move made winger Nathen Dyer flicked
by many Premier League out his hand to divert the
managers this weekend to ball away.q
French Roundup:
Sigthorsson gives Nantes 2-1 win over Saint-Etienne
SAM PETREQUIN from Ajax Amsterdam last the bench and took ad- qualities and ensure we whose attempt forced
AP Sports Writer summer, has been criti- vantage of a poor clear- make a better second half goalkeeper Stephane Ruff-
PARIS (AP) — Iceland for- cized by Nantes coach ance from Florentin Pogba of the season.” ier to save with his left foot.
ward Kolbeinn Sigthors- Michel Der Zakarian for his just seven minutes later Sigthorsson’s goal reward- The win at the Stade de La
son silenced his detractors poor performances and to score his second goal ed a long spell of domi- Beaujoire ended a seven-
when he scored with 13 perceived lack of commit- of the season with a right- nance for Nantes, which game winless run in the
minutes left to give Nantes ment at training, with the footed volley. was denied the chance to league and lifted Nantes to
a 2-1 win over Saint-Etienne possibility of a move during “Some players were below extend its lead in the 86th 10th place, two points be-
in the French league on the transfer window being the level we expected,” minute after the tall striker hind Saint-Etienne, which
Sunday. discussed. Der Zakarian said. “It’s now headed the ball for sub- slumped to a sixth consec-
Sigthorsson, who joined But the Icelander came off up to them to show their stitute Alejandro Bedoya, utive away defeat.q
