SPORTS

Manchester United are aiming to derail Liverpool's bid for a quadruple and salvage a difficult second season for Erik ten Hag in Sunday's FA Cup quarter-final.

After an extravagant FIFA football World Cup in Qatar in 2022 that featured air-conditioned stadiums, the Paris Games are hoping to present a more sober model for global sports events.

Alcaraz sailed into the last eight as he took revenge on Hungary's Fabian Marozsan with a 6-3, 6-3 victory. In-form Sinner meanwhile booked his last eight berth with a 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 defeat of Ben Shelton.

The world number 123 from Italy ended the 11-match win streak of the veteran Serb at Masters events, with Nardi bettering the childhood tennis idol whose poster hung above his bed from the age of eight.

The Gunners are the most in-form of the three contenders with a run of eight consecutive league wins in 2024, including a crucial 3-1 victory over Liverpool in January.

Free-scoring Arsenal can go top for at least a day when they host Brentford, while Aston Villa face Tottenham in a vital showdown in the battle for a top-four finish.

The Spanish icon's bombshell decision came four days after the 37-year-old lost a Las Vegas exhibition to compatriot and world number two Carlos Alcaraz.

LIV Golf commissioner Greg Norman on Tuesday sent a letter to players, seen by AFP, saying the Saudi-funded breakaway circuit had ended its efforts to be accepted for world rankings recognition that began in July 2022.

Thanks to new technology of GPS sensors placed under athletes' jerseys, researchers were able to trace with precision the speeds of each athlete, with their position indicated ten times per second.

The 27-year-old acrobatically hooked a bicycle kick past goalkeeper Dorde Petrovic into the roof of the net midway through the second half to put the home side 2-1 ahead.

Pep Guardiola's men, chasing an unprecedented fourth straight English top-flight crown, boast an impressive recent record against United but know they cannot afford a slip-up in a tight title tussle.

Liverpool made a pre-tax loss of GBP9 million ($11.4 million) last season as increased commercial income failed to offset a drop in media and matchday revenues, the club's latest accounts revealed on Thursday.

Kylian Mbappe will face former club Monaco for the final time as a Paris Saint-Germain player on Friday, provided coach Luis Enrique selects his star player.

It was her first Spain press conference since she spoke on the eve of the semi-final against Sweden in Auckland, New Zealand in August.

The bag belonged to an engineer from Paris City Hall, the police said, confirming a report by BFM television, adding that he had put the bag in the luggage compartment above his seat.

The 16th Summer Paralympics take place in the French capital from August 28 to September 8, just over two weeks after the Olympics.

Liverpool's victory was especially sweet for Klopp as it came during an injury-hit period for his club that forced him to field a remarkably inexperienced team.

President William Ruto and World Athletics head Sebastian Coe are expected to be among the mourners at the funeral in the Rift Valley where Kiptum was born, trained and died.

Russia's appeal against its suspension by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was dismissed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Friday.

A Spanish court on Thursday sentenced former Brazil international Dani Alves to four and a half years in prison after finding him guilty of raping a young woman at a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022.

Kiptum was killed on February 11 at the age of 24, just a few months after he smashed the world marathon record.

Andy Spalding, an academic and author who studies corruption in sporting "mega-events" such as the Olympics or the football World Cup, believes French authorities are showing they are serious about delivering a clean Games.

South Korea were beaten 2-0 by Jordan at the tournament earlier this month and it later emerged that skipper Son had dislocated a finger in an altercation with Lee on the eve of the semi-final.

The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner is idolised by fans in China but stayed on the bench during Inter Miami's 4-1 win in a pre-season tour match against a Hong Kong select XI on February 4.

The 39-year-old superstar and four-time NBA Most Valuable Player pondered the end of his career at Indianapolis ahead of the 73rd NBA All-Star Game, where he was selected to play for a record 20th time.

Chelsea appear lambs to the slaughter ahead of a trip to Manchester City on Saturday as the English champions have hit top form as the business end of the season approaches.

The 59-year-old German former striker, a World Cup winner as a player, was in the post for just under a year.

Italy forward Immobile slotted home the decisive goal from the penalty spot in the 69th minute at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome to pile pressure on Bundesliga champions Bayern, who risk having a disastrous season by their own exalted standards.

A Proteas team with just 40 Test caps between them have opened up the prospect of squaring the two-match series after crashing to a 281-run loss in the first Test at Mount Maunganui.