MUNICH: A 10-man Bayern Munich went unpunished for a shock 3-2 home defeat to Bochum on Saturday after title chasers Bayer Leverkusen were beaten 2-0 by Werder Bremen.
Despite the loss, just Bayern’s second of the season, the Bavarians still hold an eight-point lead over defending champions Leverkusen with nine games to play.
Leverkusen’s woes were deepened with an injury to star midfielder Florian Wirtz, who limped off after a rough challenge having played just 14 second-half minutes.
With an eye on Tuesday’s return leg in the Champions League last 16 against Leverkusen, Bayern coach Vincent Kompany named a heavily changed XI, including leaving striker Harry Kane on the bench.
Bayern midfielder Raphael Guerreiro’s 14th minute goal, when the Portuguese hammered a loose ball into the net, had Bayern on track before Serge Gnabry missed a 21st-minute penalty.
With Kane, who has converted his past 30 penalties in a row, sitting on the bench, Gnabry stepped up but hit the ball against the post.
Guerreiro however scored again with a rare header on the 28-minute mark, just three minutes before Bochum’s Jakov Medic pulled one back with an unstoppable rocket.
Bochum were given hope when Bayern’s Joao Palhinha saw red for sinking his studs into Giorgos Masouras’s ankle just before half-time.
Ibrahima Sissoko headed Bochum level six minutes into the second half and Matus Bero put the underdogs in front 71 minutes in, going the length of the field to knock in a Philipp Hofmann pass.
Bochum’s surprise victory, their first win in Munich since 1991, took them three points clear of the automatic relegation placings.
Leverkusen were down after just seven minutes when Romano Schmid tapped in from close range.
With Leverkusen failing to click, coach Xabi Alonso brought Wirtz from the bench at halftime, but the Germany midfielder was brutally fouled eight minutes afterwards and limped from the field.
Any injury to Wirtz, the club’s talisman and best player this season, would be a serious blow to Alonso’s side, particularly ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League match against Bayern, who hold a 3-0 lead from the first leg.
Borussia Dortmund’s slim chances of reaching the top four took a hit with a 1-0 home loss to Augsburg, with Jeffery Gouweleeuw’s first half header the only goal in the game.
Dortmund were toothless in attack and offered little against an in-form Augsburg, who have conceded just three goals in the league in 2025 — the best mark in Europe.
Dortmund, last season’s Champions League finalists, sit 10th in the league, seven points off the top four.
Elsewhere, St. Pauli scored their first goal in five matches in a 1-1 draw at Wolfsburg, going two points clear of the relegation playoff spot.
Fellow promoted side Holstein Kiel also picked up a point with a hard-fought 2-2 home win over Stuttgart.
Later on Saturday, Freiburg host RB Leipzig.
Bayern unpunished for shock loss as Leverkusen fall to defeat
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Bayern unpunished for shock loss as Leverkusen fall to defeat
- Despite the loss, just Bayern’s second of the season, the Bavarians still hold an eight-point lead over defending champions Leverkusen with nine games to play
- Leverkusen’s woes were deepened with an injury to star midfielder Florian Wirtz
Jannik Sinner all set for Rome Open after doping ban
- Sinner was welcomed back to action on Monday by thousands of fans who watched his first training session at the tournament on center court at the Foro Italico
- Sinner: I’m very happy, happy to be back here. It has been a very long, long three months
MILAN: Jannik Sinner is the star of the show at the upcoming Rome Open as the world No. 1 and Italian tennis hero gears up for his return to the courts after a contested doping ban.
Away from the game since agreeing a suspension with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in February, Sinner was welcomed back to action on Monday by thousands of fans who watched his first training session at the tournament on center court at the Foro Italico.
Such is the interest in Sinner, who has become a national hero in Italy since rising to the top of the men’s game, that Sky Sport broadcast the practice match with world No. 38 Jiri Lehecka live on television.
All eyes will be on the 23-year-old as he hasn’t swung a racket since retaining his Australian Open title in January, a victory which took his Grand Slam tally to three.
“I’m very happy, happy to be back here. It has been a very long, long three months,” Sinner told reporters in a packed conference room inside the center court.
Fans in Rome have waited two years to see Sinner play their clay court tournament after he missed last year’s edition, won by Alexander Zverev, with injury.
It is on a surface which is not his favorite and his rustiness was clear to see on Monday.
Only one of Sinner’s 19 titles has come on clay, in Umag back in 2022, the same year as his best result in Rome, a quarter-final exit at the hands of beaten finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas.
However he does have some time before he finally takes to the court, his status as the top-ranked player on the men’s tour allowing him a bye into the second round which starts on Friday.
Sinner has been fortunate that none of his rivals took advantage of his enforced pause, with second-ranked Zverev still almost 2,000 points behind the man who beat him in the Australian Open final.
Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz is yet to arrive in Rome after withdrawing from the Madrid Open while Novak Djokovic will have to wait a bit longer for his 100th ATP title after deciding to sit out a tournament he has won six times.
Sinner is eyeing a run at the French Open, the second Slam of the season which follows the Rome tournament.
“My objective is Roland Garros, I’m here to see what level I’m at,” said Sinner.
“I’m not here to beat whoever, but to get past the second round and then see what happens.”
Sinner’s rise to the top of the game in 2024, when he won eight titles including his first two Slams and the ATP Finals, was dogged by the controversy which followed his two positive tests for traces of clostebol in March last year.
He said last month he hit “rock bottom” at the most recent Australian Open, saying he felt like other players “looked at me differently.”
Sinner was aggrieved as he feels he did nothing wrong, and WADA said explicitly he “did not intend to cheat,” accepting he was contaminated by his physiotherapist using a spray containing the banned substance to treat a cut before providing a massage.
Regardless, he also had to accept the three-month ban offered by WADA, rather than risk being forced out of tennis for two years just as he became the dominant force in men’s tennis.
“I didn’t want to do it in the beginning. It was a bit not easy for me to accept it because I know what really happened,” said Sinner.
“But sometimes you have to choose the best in a very bad moment. And that’s what we did. It’s all over now, so I’m happy to play again.”
Milan clinch 2-1 win with two quick-fire goals in rainy Genoa clash
- The result keep Milan at ninth place with 57 points, six points behind fourth-placed Juventus
- Milan completed the turnaround when Genoa midfielder Frendrup, attempting to clear a short cross, inadvertently tapped the ball into his own net
GENOA: AC Milan secured a 2-1 victory over Genoa in a rainy Monday Serie A clash, with a rapid second-half turnaround driven by Rafael Leao’s equalizer and an own goal from Morten Frendrup.
The result keep Milan at ninth place with 57 points, six points behind fourth-placed Juventus, who occupy the last Champions League spot, with three rounds remaining.
With crucial back-to-back clashes against Bologna looming — first in the league followed by the Coppa Italia final — Milan appeared passive for much of the match, lacking urgency and creativity until a late surge turned the tide.
“We always try to improve. We work on individual and group levels. We work a lot,” Milan manager Sergio Conceicao told reporters.
“The players responded well, which shows we have a group that believes in what we do at Milanello (Milan training ground). I’m pleased with that.”
Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan was the stand out performer in a first half largely dominated by Genoa, making several crucial saves to keep his side level at the break.
Milan began to find their rhythm late in the first half and nearly took the lead just before the break, but Christian Pulisic was denied at point-blank range by a sharp save from Genoa keeper Nicola Leali.
The second half started in a largely uninspired fashion, with the relentless downpour proving more consistent than the football, as play was frequently halted for injury treatments.
Vitinha, introduced only a minute earlier, made an instant impact in the 61st minute, drifting into space inside the box and smashing home a perfectly delivered cross with his first touch to put Genoa in front.
Quick turnaround
A fortunate equalizer from Leao came in the 76th minute, when a low cross from the byline by Santiago Gimenez wrong-footed the Genoa defense and found the Portuguese forward unmarked in the box; his shot took a deflection off Genoa’s Brooke Norton-Cuffy before nestling in the net to level the score.
Less than two minutes later, Milan completed the turnaround when Genoa midfielder Frendrup, attempting to clear a short cross, inadvertently tapped the ball into his own net.
In stoppage time, Milan nearly added a third when Leao fired a powerful effort that Leali was forced to parry away from danger.
“In terms of our game plan, we could’ve done better in possession during the first half. We played against a tough team on a tough pitch. Credit to the opponent — but we could have looked for depth more,” Conceicao said.
“On the goal we conceded, collectively, we could have done more.”
Nottingham Forest draws at Crystal Palace as Champions League hopes fade
- A win at Selhurst Park would have brought them equal with Chelsea and Newcastle but one point means it stays in sixth
LONDON: Nottingham Forest drew with Crystal Palace 1-1 in the Premier League on Monday and saw its Champions League hopes fade.
Nuno Espírito Santo’s men have spent most of the year in the league top three but a run of one win in four has dropped them behind Chelsea, Newcastle and a resurgent Manchester City.
A win at Selhurst Park would have brought them equal with Chelsea and Newcastle but one point means it stays in sixth, with the top five qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
Neither team was able to take control of a sometimes scrappy match that saw eight names go in the referee’s book.
Palace took the lead with a penalty kick after an hour. After a video review, Matz Sels was adjudged to have felled Tyrick Mitchell and Eberechi Eze made no mistake from the spot.
Forest bounced right back within four minutes, Murillo doing enough to deflect a goal-bound shot from Neco Williams away from the keeper.
Eze hitting the woodwork in the dying seconds and Eddie Nketiah having a goal disallowed for offside in stoppage time meant FA Cup finalist Palace has not won any of its last five league games.
Minister of Sport receives 2025 AFC Elite Champions League winners Al-Ahli
- Prince Abdulaziz congratulated the Al-Ahli players and management on their victory over Japan’s Kawasaki
- Prince Abdulaziz expressed his admiration at the outstanding performances delivered by the team over the course of the tournament
JEDDAH: Minister of Sport Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal received the 2025 AFC Elite Champions League winners Al-Ahli at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah and congratulated them on their victory over Japan’s Kawasaki.
The reception was also attended by Assistant Minister of Sport Abdulilah bin Saad Al-Dalak, President of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation Yasser Al-Misehal, and several ministry officials and leaders.
Prince Abdulaziz expressed his admiration at the outstanding performances delivered by the Al-Ahli players over the course of the tournament. He also praised the players’ commitment, competiveness and cohesiveness, which paved the way for ultimate victory.
PFL MENA season 2 opens with world-class talent in Jeddah on Friday
- Reigning lightweight champion, Iran’s Mohsen Mohammadseifi, battles rising contender Ahmed El-Sisy from Egypt
- Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz bin Moammar makes his debut against Morocco’s Fares Hamdani in catchweight bout
JEDDAH: The second season of PFL MENA begins this Friday at the Onyx Arena in Jeddah, featuring world-class talent from the Middle East North Africa region.
Headlining the card is a high-stakes lightweight showdown between reigning champion Mohsen Mohammadseifi from Iran and rising contender Ahmed El-Sisy from Egypt.
The division also features a trio of compelling matchups, with Algeria’s Souhil Tahiri taking on Kuwait’s Abdullah Saleem, and Bahrain’s Abbas Khan squaring off against Moroccan striker Salah Eddine Hamli.
The featherweight division promises equal intensity.
Jordan’s Abdelrahman Alhyasat, riding the momentum of a five-fight win streak, faces a formidable challenge in undefeated Moroccan Taha Bendaoud.
In other featured featherweight contests, Jordan’s Izzeddine Al-Derbani meets Algerian standout Mohamed Amine, while Iraq’s Hussein Salem takes on Egypt’s Assem Ghanem.
Adding to the excitement are several exhibition bouts, including Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz bin Moammar making his debut against Morocco’s Fares Hamdani in a catchweight fight.
The flyweight division will see local favorite Malik Basahel clash with Algeria’s Mountassir Boutouta.
The evening will also spotlight women’s MMA, with undefeated Kuwaiti talent Eman Almudhaf going toe-to-toe with Brazil’s Shamara Braga in a featherweight contest that promises fireworks.
Stacked with world-class talent, the PFL’s return to Jeddah sets the stage for a thrilling 2025 season.
