14-04-2021

WEDnESDAy, AfRil 14, 2021
9
Pereira converts a penalty to score the opening goal for Sam Allardyce's side.
Photo: AP
West Brom sink Saints to boost slender
survival hopes, Everton frustrated
SPORTS DESK
West Bromwich Albion improved
their slender hopes of avoiding
relegation from the Premier
League as they survived VAR
controversy to beat Southampton
3-0, while Everton's fading top
four bid was damaged by a 0-0
draw at Brighton on Monday,
reports UNB.
Albion saw Mbaye Diagne's
goal questionably ruled out by
VAR early in the first half at the
Hawthorns. But Sam Allardyce's
side recovered from that blow to
sweep into a two-goal lead by
half-time thanks to Matheus
Pereira's penalty and a Matt
Phillips strike. Callum Robinson
sealed West Brom's second
successive win after the interval
as the Baggies built on their
stunning 5-2 victory at Chelsea.
Second bottom Albion move
within eight points of fourth
bottom Newcastle with seven
games left. The Baggies have
scored eight goals in their last two
games, two more than they had
netted in their previous 11
combined, but their unexpected
revival might have come too late
to save them from slipping into
the Championship.
"We have had two very
important wins that are pricking
up people's ears but unfortunately
we have to rely on other people
losing," Allardyce said. The latest
VAR row in a season of problems
with the technology drew a
scathing response from Allardyce.
"I'm afraid so," he said when
asked if VAR is a laughing stock.
"There are too many of us not
being given an opportunity to
express how to make it better."
Ice-cool Pereira -
Southampton's limp display was
the worst possible preparation for
next weekend's FA Cup semi-final
against Leicester. After just four
minutes it looked like being a
frustrating evening for Albion.
Diagne nodded in from closerange
and was flagged
offside, with VAR backing
the onfield call because
television cameras could
not get the right angle to
conclusively prove the
striker was on or offside.
But Pereira was brought
down by Saints keeper
Fraser Forster in the 32nd
minute and the Brazilian
picked himself up to
dispatch the spot-kick.
Phillips got the second
three minutes later when
he converted Diagne's
cross at the far post.
Robinson put the result
beyond doubt in the 69th
minute when he drilled in
from Okay Yokuslu's pass.
Adding
to
Southampton's woes,
Johnstone saved James
Ward-Prowse's stoppagetime
penalty after Conor
Townsend's foul on
Moussa Djenepo. At the
Amex Stadium, Everton
were hoping to close the
gap on fourth placed West
Ham in the race to qualify
for next season's
Champions League. But
Carlo Ancelotti's team
managed only one shot
on target as their
winless run extended to
five games in all
competitions. Brighton
dominated for long
periods and Neal
Maupay and Yves
Bissouma, with a
spectacular overhead
kick, both went close in
the first half. Lewis
Dunk's goalbound flick
brought a fine save from
Everton keeper Robin Olsen
after the break.
England paceman Jofra
Archer cleared to train
again after hand surgery
SPORTS DESK
England pace bowler Jofra Archer has been
cleared to resume light training following
surgery for a freak hand injury with no timeline
for his return to competitive action, the
England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said
on Tuesday, reports UNB. Archer underwent
surgery to remove a glass fragment from a
tendon on his right hand after an attempt to
clean his fish tank went wrong. The 26-year-old
sustained the injury at his home in January and
the operation was carried out while he was still
undergoing treatment for a long-term elbow
injury."… Archer has been given the all-clear by
his hand consultant to resume training after his
right hand continues to heal following his
operation," ECB said in a statement. "He will return
to light training this week, working closely with the
Sussex and England men's medical teams. It's
hoped that he will be able to up his intensity with
his bowling from next week.
"No decision has been made as yet on when
Archer is due to return to playing."
Archer's hand injury was managed by England
during their recent test and T20 series in
India.Indian Premier League side Rajasthan
Royals, who first bought the Barbados-born
paceman for 72 million Indian rupees
($955,109) in 2018, said that they were hopeful
he can play a part in the current campaign.
Son row shows game still struggles
with simulation debate
SPORTS DESK
The issue of 'simulation', more colloquially
known as playacting, is one football has long
struggled to confront and it has returned as a
major talking point after Sunday's Premier
League match between Tottenham Hotspur
and Manchester United, reports UNB. Spurs
manager Jose Mourinho and United boss Ole
Gunnar Solskjaer traded barbs over
Tottenham forward Son Heung-min's
reaction to being accidentally caught in the
face by the hand of United midfielder Scott
McTominay. Son fell to the ground clutching
his face and, after United scored from the
resulting attack, was surrounded by his team
mates while he lay on the pitch. In the
meantime, referee Chris Kavanagh was called
to the pitchside monitor by VAR to review the
incident and decided, to Solskjaer's fury, to
disallow the goal.
The Norwegian said the referee had been
"conned" and television pundits lambasted
the decision with ex-Manchester City
defender Micah Richards saying: "It's
embarrassing, this is not football
anymore".Former referee Peter Walton said
the officials had got the call wrong.
Professional Game Match Officials Limited
(PGMOL), the body responsible for match
officials in English professional football, said
the United player's flailing arm "wasn't part
of McTominay's natural running movement
and was careless". Whatever the merits of
those views in relation to the incident and
South Korea international Son's behaviour at
the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where
United won 3-1, the issue of simulation is one
of the most emotive in the game. Whether it
be feigning injury to get a player booked or
sent off, 'diving' to win a penalty, or
exaggerating contact to ensure a favourable
decision, claims of dishonesty inevitably raise
tempers.
Such behaviour is punishable with a yellow
card under the laws of the game, where it is
covered as "attempts to deceive the referee"
yet interestingly such sanctions have become
increasingly rare in the Premier League.
The data suggests the key factor in the
decline has been the absence of supporters
over the past year. "Typically somewhere
between 20 and 30 yellow cards per season
(including second yellows) were being given
for diving prior to lockdown last year. Since
then there have been just four, all of which
were this season," says Simon Gleave, head of
sports analysis at Nielsen's Gracenote. While
the absence of fans, howling their outrage at
a 'dive', may be a key factor, the nature of
simulation has arguably also changed.
Barcelona surpass
Real Madrid to
become world's
most valuable club
SPORTS DESK
Barcelona have leapfrogged
Spanish rivals Real Madrid
to become the world's most
valuable soccer club with a
valuation of $4.76 billion,
according to a list published
by business magazine
Forbes here on Monday,
reports UNB. Real Madrid,
who have topped the list five
times in the past, edged
Barcelona 2-1 in 'El Clasico'
on Saturday but find
themselves second best off
the pitch with a valuation of
$4.75 billion.Forbes said the
average worth of the top 20
clubs has increased by 30%
from two years ago to $2.28
billion despite the Covid-19
pandemic impacting
matchday revenue, which
fell to $441 million last
season-down 9.6% from
2017-18. "The pain is far
from over, with a worsening
decline in matchday revenue
during the current season, as
most of the teams in
Europe's top leagues still
permit few fans to attend
games," wrote Forbes'
assistant managing editor
Mike Ozanian. European
champions Bayern Munich
($4.215 billion) are third on
the list while the Premier
League's 'Big Six'-
Manchester United,
Liverpool, Manchester City,
Chelsea, Arsenal and
Tottenham Hotspur-are in
the top 10. French
champions and last year's
Champions League runnersup
Paris St Germain moved
up to ninth after being
valued at $2.5 billion with a
129% increase in two yearsthe
biggest increase among
the top 10 clubs. According
to Forbes, the world's 20
most valuable soccer teams
are worth an average of
$2.28 billion apiece, an
increase of 30% from two
years ago, the last time we
published the ranking. The
jump comes despite a
decline in revenue caused by
limited attendance during
the pandemic, with buyers
focused on what they see as
still untapped revenue
potential in the sport's
massive global following.
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