Turkey's amputee football team wins European championship

Turkey wins the European Amputee Football Federation (EAFF) championship after beating England 2-1 in the final held at Istanbul's Vodafone Park arena.

An emotional evening in Besiktas's home stadium proved to be a title night for a Turkish amputee football team that scored the winning goal in injury time to claim the European Amputee Football Federation (EAFF) championship.

Turkey led 1-0 at halftime thanks to a goal in the 25th minute by Omer Guleryuz. 

Although the dominant display from the Turkish team continued until the final minute, England's Ray Westbrook still managed to tie the game in the 50th minute. 

However, Turkish team captain Osman Cakmak scored two minutes later to give Turkey the title.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan congratulated the Turkish amputee team on Twitter. "I congratulate our national amputee football team for becoming European champions by beating England. Turkey is proud of you!" he said.

Liverpool to host undefeated Manchester United in North-West derby

While in-form United hope to mount a challenge for their first English title since 2013, Liverpool, already seven points behind their second-placed rivals, are battling to stay relevant after an inconsistent start.

Turkey Beat Croatia in Critical World Cup Qualifier

Cenk Tosun's follow-up goal in 75th minute gives Turkey crucial 3 points against group leaders
Turkey's National Football Team defeated Croatia 1-0 on Monday night in a 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifier Group I match.

CROATIAN CYCLIST DURASEK WINS TOUR OF TURKEY

Croatian cyclist Kristijan Durasek has won Sunday the 51st Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey.

Durasek, racing for Lampre-Merida, completed the tour in 31 hours, 6 minutes and 44 seconds.

Spanish cyclist Lluis Guillermo Mas Bonet of the Caja Rural – Seguros RGA team claimed victory in the eighth and final stage of the tour held in Istanbul.

The 26-year-old racer Bonet won the 124-kilometer stage in 2 hours, 45 minutes and 3 seconds, beating British cyclist Mark Cavendish and Spanish racer Carlos Barbero Cuesta at the finish line by a hair's length.

Ronaldo backs coach Ancelotti

Madrid - Real Madrid top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo has signalled strong support for coach Carlo Ancelotti and sent a clear message to club president Florentino Perez that he does not want the Italian to be sacked.

Perez is widely expected to make Ancelotti the scapegoat after Real ended the season without winning a major trophy but the intervention of dressing-room heavyweight Ronaldo may make him think twice.

Ronaldo netted a hat-trick in Real's final game of the campaign on Saturday, a 7-3 drubbing of city rivals Getafe at the Bernabeu, taking his tally at the top of the La Liga scoring chart to 48 goals.

It was his best single-season haul in Spain's top flight since he joined from Manchester United in 2009 and two short of the record of 50 set in 2011-12 by Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, who scored 43 this term.

After the match, Portugal captain Ronaldo posted a message on his Twitter feed with a photograph of himself and Ancelotti.

"Great coach and amazing person," Ronaldo wrote. "Hope we work together next season."

Ancelotti, who led Real to a record-extending 10th European title and a King's Cup triumph in his debut year in Spain in 2013-14, has made it clear he wants to carry on but said on Saturday if Real do let him go he would take a year out.

His contract runs until the end of next season and he said he expected to meet with club officials early next week to discuss his future.

Media reports in Italy have suggested the 55-year-old could return to former club AC Milan, with whom he won the European Cup as both a player and coach.

Napoli's Spanish coach Rafa Benitez is the frontrunner to replace Ancelotti at Real, where he had a stint as a youth trainer, according to local media.

Real's Colombia midfielder James Rodriguez also backed Ancelotti after Saturday's game.

"He arrived two years ago and he knows the team, he knows how we are and how we go about things," he told Spanish television. "But it's not my decision and it's not my place to talk about it."

View the original article here

FIFA candidates targets of blackmail

Singapore - Two men who launched challenges to Sepp Blatter for the leadership of world football body FIFA have been targeted in an attempted blackmail scam, a report said on Saturday.

Prince Ali bin al Hussein and Michael van Praag, who has now pulled out of the race, were both approached by Kenya-based conmen who said Blatter had gathered sensitive information about them.

Singapore's The New Paper and Dutch daily De Volkskrant said the men demanded money to hand over the information from what they claimed was a smear campaign orchestrated by Blatter.

According to The New Paper, Jordan's Prince Ali, who is now Blatter's sole challenger in next week's FIFA vote, and van Praag both confirmed approaches.

"We have had a number of individuals coming forward with similar allegations," a spokesman for Prince Ali was quoted as saying.

"Our approach has been to try and set up meetings with these individuals so we can assess them and the information they are giving for ourselves."

The conmen said the director of an India-based security company put together a surveillance report on Prince Ali for submission to Blatter's daughter, Corinne.

But when contacted by The New Paper, both the investigator and Corinne Blatter denied all knowledge and said they had been set up.

"I do not know who is behind it but it is clearly intended to damage my father's reputation," Corinne Blatter was quoted as saying.

According to the report, the approaches by email appeared genuine but details such as the investigator's phone number and email address were wrong.

"I have no idea who would want to set me up, especially on such an elaborate scam as this," the investigator, who was not named, told The New Paper.

"I have never worked for Ms Corinne Blatter in any way."

Van Praag received an email which stated: "Some time in late August 2014, Sepp commissioned some espionage work on you fearing you might stand against him in future."

The Dutch FA chief said: "What do you think it would mean for my image if I were to respond to those e-mails?

"If it is true that they are working on a case against me,then so be it. I have nothing to hide."

Van Praag and Portuguese great Luis Figo withdrew from the FIFA race on Thursday, leaving Prince Ali as the only man standing between Blatter and a fifth term as president on May 29.

Swiss-based FIFA has been hit by a succession of scandals, including claims of widespread bribery in the run-up to Qatar's successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup.

View the original article here