Dybala penalty double puts Juve in control in Italian Cup

Jose Callejon opened the scoring in Turin but the hosts saw their Argentine forwards turn the tie on its head, with two penalties converted

Gonzalo Higuain scored against his old club and Paulo Dybala converted a two penalties as Juventus came from behind to beat Napoli 3-1 at home in the first leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final on Tuesday.

Jose Callejon finished off a flowing Napoli move to open the scoring after 36 minutes, a one-two between Lorenzo Insigne and Arkadiusz Milik creating the goal, which put Napoli into the lead for the first time ever at the Juventus Stadium.

For much of the first half Napoli were on top despite trailing Juve by 12 points in Serie A, but the holders equalised two minutes after the restart when Dybala was clipped by Kalidou Koulibaly in the box, the striker scoring the penalty himself.

Juve's second-half improvement saw them take the lead through Higuain, who scored from a narrow angle after Juan Cuadrado's cross was misjudged by Pepe Reina and Koulibaly, before another penalty extended their lead.

Reina was the guilty party this time, bringing down Cuadrado to end a rapid counter-attack, and Dybala put away his second spot-kick of the match to complete the scoring and leave Massimiliano Allegri's side in firm control of the tie.

Victory stretches Juve's winning streak to 10 games in all competitions, while Napoli's second defeat in their last 10 away matches means Maurizio Sarri's side have it all to do in the second leg

Milik made his first start since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury on international duty for Poland in October and he nearly enjoyed a dream return, only for Giorgio Chiellini to block his shot.

Dybala almost opened the scoring after 13 minutes, Reina getting enough behind the shot to turn it wide.

Higuain had been quiet against his former side but his burst of power after 32 minutes threatened to break the deadlock, the striker charging into the penalty area but firing over the crossbar, a miss that proved telling as Napoli then brilliantly opened the scoring.

Insigne found space to play a delightful one-two with Milik before bending a cross to the back post for Callejon, who clipped a shot into the ground and off the post from close range.

Juve were denied an equaliser on the stroke of half-time, Reina blocking Mario Mandzukic's low volley with his shins and recovering well to repel Stephan Lichtsteiner's rebound.

Soon after the interval Juve drew level from the penalty spot, however, as Dybala went down following Koulibaly's challenge and sent Reina the wrong way with his coolly taken kick.

Allegri's men forged ahead after 64 minutes, with Higuain inevitably on target.

Substitute Cuadrado floated a cross into the area and Reina came to collect but missed the ball, which flicked off Koulibaly's head to present Higuain with a straightforward finish.

A dramatic minute then saw key penalty decisions at both ends swing the game decisively in Juve's favour, with referee Paolo Valeri first turning down Raul Albiol's appeals.

The hosts broke at speed and when Dybala fed Cuadrado in the box, Reina was adjudged to have brought the winger down, Dybala again converting into the goalkeeper's bottom-right corner.

Juve closed out the game in relative ease and will be strong favourites to move into the final as they seek a third straight Coppa Italia title.

Shanghai SIPG beat Wanderers 5-1

Hulk scored one and was involved in a further three goals as Shanghai SIPG stormed to a 5-1 win over Western Sydney Wanderers in Group F of the 2017 AFC Champions League at Shanghai Stadium on Tuesday to maintain their 100% start in the continental competition.

The forward towered above the Western Sydney defence to head home Zhang Wei’s cross from the left in the third minute, before the hosts were two up inside 18 minutes after the big Brazilian slipped in Oscar to fire across goalkeeper Jerrad Tyson into the bottom right corner.

The visitors pulled one back through Mitch Nichols on 20 minutes only for Shi Ke to restore Shanghai’s two-goal advantage from close in five minutes later after Tyson had parried out Hulk’s free-kick from distance. Elkeson then diverted the heavily involved striker’s mishit volley goalwards in the 27th minute to give Shanghai a 4-1 lead at the interval.

Andre Villas-Boas’s team continued to dominated after the restart but had to wait until 15 minutes from time to stretch their lead further when Wu Lei latched on to Fu Huan’s ball over the top to drill low past Tyson as Shanghai joined Urawa Red Diamonds on six points from two games after the Japanese side 

Ulsan Hyundai beat Brisbane Roar 6-0 in AFC Champions League

Kim In-sung and Mislav Orsic both bagged braces as Ulsan Hyundai claimed their first points of the 2017 AFC Champions League following a comprehensive 6-0 victory over Brisbane Roar in Group E on Tuesday.

The 2012 winners opened the scoring on 10 minutes at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium when Kim’s low drive from the edge of the area took a slight deflection to evade goalkeeper Jamie Young, then Orsic netted a fine individual goal three minutes later to put the hosts in a commanding position.

The Croatian forward scored again on 34 minutes and his countryman Ivan Kovacec added a fourth 10 minutes after the restart. Kim netted his double midway through the half before substitute Lee Jong-ho rounded off the scoring in stoppage time to complete a comfortable night for the Korean side.

Foxes bounce back from Ranieri sacking to stun Liverpool

WHERE has that been all season?

Leicester City came firing out of the blocks against Liverpool in its first English Premier League game since Claudio Ranieri was ruthlessly dismissed.

And they played like champions.

Funny that.

The fallen Premier League winners played nothing like the relegation battlers they have become to blitz to a 2-0 first-half lead against Liverpool, playing with all the intensity and pace that defined their 2015-2016 campaign.

Jamie Vardy said after the 3-1 win: "We've come under a lot of unfair stick from stuff in the press and online.

"The lads wanted to put in a reaction.

"Now it's up to us to consistently do that."

When asked where that's been all season, he added: "To be honest with you I couldn't put my finger on it. We've been working hard for everything ... tonight, it clicked."

On his own performance, he explained: "I've been very frustrated with the amount of goals I've got this season, I hope that pushes us along."

While there were tributes to Ranieri in the terraces, the fans rebounded from the turbulent weekend to back their side, with a rocking atmosphere at King Power Stadium.

Fittingly, Vardy opened the scoring, finding his scoring touch for the first time since December 10 against Manchester City.

His goal, to go 1-0 up, was Leicester's first in all of 2017.

It was vintage Leicester, getting the ball to its striker quickly from midfield, with the England marksman running in behind before nailing the chance.

When it rains, it pours. Vardy, one of the heroes last season who has had to defend the players and distance them from speculation that they knifed Ranieri, went on to snare a brace with a supreme header in the 60th minute.

Before that, Danny Drinkwater found his mojo just before the interval with a scintillating strike to double the advantage.

Sacking managers often sparks a reaction from a playing group.

Rarely, however, does a sacking polarise as much as axing the architect of one of sport's great miracles.

Drinkwater said that they returned to what worked previously: "We kind of make our game on the basics: talking, moving, pressure, high intensity.

"It's going back to basics, forcing mistakes, press them high up the pitch, cause them problems and that helps us.

"Got the three points, that's what we needed."

Real Madrid come from behind to edge Villareal out, stay on top of table

Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale both scored as Real Madrid staged a remarkable late comeback from two goals down to win 3-2 at Villarreal and stay top of La Liga on Sunday.

Substitute Alvaro Morata got the winner in the 83rd minute to complete a 19-minute turnaround that keeps Zinedine Zidane's side on course for their first La Liga triumph since 2012.

Real are top on 55 points, one ahead of Barcelona who beat Atletico Madrid 2-1, and three clear of Sevilla, while Zidane's side have a game in hand on both of their title rivals.

Villarreal's Manu Trigueros lashed home from inside the area to put the hosts ahead five minutes after the break and Cedric Bakambu doubled the lead in the 57th with a fine finish past Keylor Navas, though he was fortunate not to be ruled offside.

Real looked destined for a second loss in a week on the east coast after Wednesday's 2-1 reverse at Valencia but Bale, making his first start since November, headed a goal back in the 64th before Ronaldo levelled with a penalty 10 minutes later.

Morata then headed Marcelo's cross under Villarreal's substitute goalkeeper Andres Fernandez, who had replaced first choice Sergio Asenjo when he sustained a muscle injury after making a stunning save to deny Karim Benzema.

Stefanidi: “I’m ready to jump 4.90m right now”

Ekaterini Stefanidi broke Yelena Isinbayeva’s championship record in “probably some of the most difficult conditions I’ve ever jumped in,” at the European Athletics Championships in Amsterdam last July and the Russian could lose another of her records in Belgrade.

But first and foremost for Stefanidi next weekend is winning.

“The gold medal is the most important thing so if I win with 4.40m, I’ll still be happy!” said Stefanidi. “But it’s definitely something in the back of my mind. Last year I got the outdoor record from [Isinbayeva] so it’s definitely a goal.”

Stefanidi’s main focus this year is an assault on the world outdoor title in London in August so while we might have to wait for a few months until we see Stefanidi at her very best, the American-based Greek vaulter has still been scaling heights only world indoor record-holder Jenn Suhr has surpassed this winter.

Stefanidi cleared 4.82m at the Millrose Games in New York to move to second on the world rankings - and top of the European lists - and even at less than full health, the silver medallist from Prague still had the beating of an international-level field in Birmingham last weekend with a 4.63m clearance.

“I’m happy with the 4.82m but I had some issues coming in to Birmingham,” reflected Stefanidi on her form. “I picked up a cold on the plane and I was hyperventilating before each jump trying to take a deep breath. I felt good but I could not recover between jumps. I know I’m in good form going into Belgrade - I just need to get healthy again.”

After a busy month of travel and competition, Stefanidi has been putting the finishing touches to her preparations back home in Greece for an assault on not only another major title but perhaps the championship record which stands to Isinbayeva at 4.90m.

“I think I’m ready to jump 4.90m right now,” she said. “We are still fine-tuning my run and my training is to peak for London and not for Belgrade.”

Stefanidi will be one of the biggest names in action in Belgrade and the only athlete in contention for a hat-trick of titles in eight months. In the build-up to her Olympic triumph, Stefanidi said beating the elements in Amsterdam - which proved Renaud Lavillenie’s undoing - galvanised her belief that she can get towards five metres whatever the weather.

“Jumping 4.81m in those tough conditions helped me heading towards Rio. More than winning the championships, it was knowing I could get the height even if the conditions weren’t great,” she said

Ibrahimovic fires Manchester United to first trophy under Mourinho

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's late header secured Manchester United the first major trophy of the Jose Mourinho era, breaking Southampton hearts at the end of a thrilling EFL Cup final.

Wembley bore witness to a superb encounter as expectant United faced a Saints side looking to win just the second major trophy in their history, the first having come 41 years ago when the sides met in the FA Cup final.

Manolo Gabbiadini's brace had Southampton dreaming as Ibrahimovic and Jesse Lingard strikes were cancelled out, only for Ibrahimovic to head home three minutes time to clinch a hard-fought 3-2 win.

Europa League and FA Cup glory remain further possibilities this term, but Mourinho will know his players need to up their game moving forwards.

After Gabbiadini had seen an opening goal inexplicably ruled out, under-performing United showed their ruthless edge as Ibrahimovic fired home a free-kick before Lingard scored on a third straight Wembley appearance.

But it appeared a gut-punch rather than a decisive killer-blow. Gabbiadini gave Southampton hope with a close-range goal in first-half stoppage time, before sending the success-starved fans wild with an outstanding leveller.

Oriol Romeu crashed a header off the post shortly after avoiding a second yellow card, but it was not to be for Southampton.

Ibrahimovic's 26th goal of the season saw Mourinho become the first United manager to win a major trophy in his debut season, and earned the Portuguese a fourth League Cup triumph - a joint record with Brian Clough and Sir Alex Ferguson.

Few would have known United were the side making a record-equalling 49th trip to Wembley as Saints flew out the blocks.

Dusan Tadic and James Ward-Prowse proved a headache for United's rattled backline, with Nathan Redmond ending a mazy run with an attempt that deflected wide for a corner.

That start should have brought with it a goal in the 11th minute. Southampton's success-starved fans erupted as Gabbiadini turned home hard-working Cedric's cross from the right. Inexplicably, though, the assistant raised his flag for offside, despite the Italian being clearly on and Ryan Bertrand not interfering with play.

Saints soon had further reason to feel aggrieved at Stuart Burt's decision.

Romeu was booked for a lunge on Ander Herrera, giving Ibrahimovic a chance from 30 yards. It was an opportunity the in-form veteran took with aplomb, firing home a stunning free-kick and wheeling off towards his fans in celebration.

Saints' wall and goalkeeper Fraser Forster will feel they should have done better with the 19th-minute strike, which Puel's men busily went about cancelling out.

Ward-Prowse and Tadic forced the returning David de Gea into action from the edge of the box in quick succession.

United were not attacking with the same regularity, but unlike Saints made their threat count.

Marcos Rojo was allowed through to lay off to Lingard just inside the box, with Southampton's lack of pressure giving the attacking midfielder time to calmly side-foot past Forster.

But it was not a fatal strike after Saints collected themselves. In first-time stoppage time, Ward-Prowse's fine right-wing cross was met by a smart Gabbiadini touch, turning the ball past De Gea and turning to the assistant celebrating.

Michael Carrick replaced Juan Mata for a second period Southampton started brightly, with Redmond seeing an exquisite volley kept out by De Gea.

There was no let-up from Puel's men. Steven Davis beat Anthony Martial to a header and Gabbiadini swivelled expertly, firing through a crowd into the bottom corner in front of the Saints fans.

It was a moment of utter joy for half of Wembley - and one Ibrahimovic could have soon rendered worthless, only for Forster to recover from his poor clearance to smother.

Herrera claimed compatriot Romeu should have received a second booking after being clattered, but the appeals ere ignored, with the defensive midfielder soon leaping above Paul Pogba to power a header off a post.

United attempted to make the most of that let-off. A superb challenge from Maya Yoshida prevented Lingard from getting a shot away, before the unmarked winger wasted a glorious 76th-minute chance

Redmond saw an attempt deflect wide as Saints pushed for a winner, although substitute Marcus Rashford came close to grabbing one at the other end by forcing Forster into a near-post stop.

It was a frantic conclusion and, having blocked a Stephens corner at the other end, Ibrahimovic secured the win.

Unmarked from six yards, he powered home Herrera's cross to secure a memorable win and send United fans wild.

Melbourne Jets, Mariners all square in F3 Derby

FRUSTRATED coach Mark Jones conceded the Newcastle Jets need to “step up soon” if they are to play finals football after stumbling to a 1-all draw against the Central Coast Mariners at McDonald Jones Stadium on Sunday.

Aleksandr Kokko scored his maiden A-League goal but the Finnish striker’s good work was undone when Mariners defender Scott Galloway pounced on a poor clearance and drilled an equaliser in the 48th minute.

The home side controlled large periods and finished the stronger, but in the end relied on a goal-line clearance from man-of-the-match Johnny Koutroumbis for a share of the points.

It was the second F3 derby to end 1-all this season.

The Jets (22 points) would have jumped back into the top six with a win. Instead they move above Wellington into seventh on goal difference, two points behind Wanderers, with six rounds remaining.

It was the second straight game, following a 1-0 loss to Adelaide, in which the Jets have dropped points to teams below them.

Again they were left to lament missed opportunities in front of goal.

“You need to be effective,” Jones said. “If you are a defender, you need to make sure we have a clean sheet, and if you are an attacker, you need to score goals. It comes done to that now. It is not about being pretty, it is about getting the job done.” 

Starting just his fourth game, Kokko put the Jets ahead in the 21st minute with a beautifully worked goal. Morten Norstrand chased down a ball over the top and delivered a pass into the box. The 190cm front-man climbed above Galloway and Jacob Poscoleiro and powered a header into the back of the net.

“That is what he is here to do,” Jones said. “You could say it is his second coming; one goal, one game, I’m very happy with that. You come on and score a goal and you are going to keep your spot.”

Jets keeper Tomislav Arcaba recovered from a nervous start in his debut to make two brilliant saves, including a spectacular diving effort to deny Fabio Ferreira late.

His opposite Paul Izzo was also kept busy.

Both teams were playing for their lives but the clash lacked the normal venom of a derby.

There was little Arcaba could do about the Mariners equaliser.

The Jets failed to clear a corner and the ball sat up for Galloway to drive a right-foot shot from 15 metres into the left corner.

“You are 1-0 up at half-time, and if you keep a clean sheet you win the game,” Jones said.

“The goal we conceded was annoying. It was a corner we probably didn’t need to give away. From there it was a poor header and a lack of urgency to close the ball down.”

Stung by the equaliser, the Jets lost their way before  finally springing back to life in the final 20 minutes.

The Mariners defence scrambled well to close down a runaway Nordstrand, Steve Ugarkovic had a shot blocked and Izzo made a brilliant reflex save at the near post when Andrew Nabbout appeared certain to score.

“At the end of the day it comes down to being effective,” Jones said. “It can look pretty and look good, but if it doesn’t go in the back of the net it’s not good.”

Chelsea surge 11 points clear, Leicester into bottom three

Chelsea's processional march towards the Premier League title continued at Swansea City's expense on Saturday as last season's champions Leicester City dropped into the bottom three.

Antonio Conte's side were not firing on all cylinders against a resolute Swansea side managed by their former assistant manager Paul Clement but second-half goals by Pedro and Diego Costa made sure of a 3-1 victory.

Cesc Fabregas, playing in his 300th Premier League match, put Chelsea ahead in the 19th minute before Fernando Llorento equalised on the stroke of half time.

They are now 11 points ahead of Manchester City who have 13 games left to play and while Italian Conte is too cagey to start proclaiming his side yet, only a monumental loss of form can deny them the title.

Chelsea's victory made it mathematically impossible for Leicester to catch them as they are 42 points behind the leaders going into their home clash with Liverpool on Monday - their first fixture since the sacking of manager Claudio Ranieri.

Leicester will start that game third bottom after Crystal Palace's 1-0 victory over Middlesbrough at Selhurst Park on Saturday took them out of the relegation zone.

Patrick van Aanholt's 34th-minute goal was enough to take Palace to 17th place with 22 points, one ahead of Leicester and Hull City who drew 1-1 at home with Burnley.

Boro also have 22 points but are sliding towards the drop zone after nine league games without a win.

Bournemouth are another side being sucked into the relegation battle after a 2-1 defeat at West Bromwich Albion despite taking a fourth-minute lead through Josh King's penalty. Craig Dawson and Gareth McAuley replied for West Brom who are clear in eighth place.

In-form Everton continue to harbour hopes of catching the top four and beat bottom club Sunderland 2-0 to move within six points of fourth-placed Arsenal.

Romelu Lukaku made the points safe for Everton with 10 minutes remaining, taking his tally for the season 17, level at the top of the scoring charts with Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez.

Sunderland's fourth defeat in six games left them on 19 points.

Bundesliga round-up: Bayern score eight vs. Hamburg, Leipzig and Dortmund win

Robert Lewandowski scored a hattrick as Bayern Munich put eight past Hamburg. There were also victories for Leipzig and Dortmund, but Leverkusen coach Roger Schmidt is under growing pressure after another defeat.

Bayern Munich 8–0 Hamburg

(Vidal 17', Lewandowski 24' pen, 42', 54', Alaba 56', Coman 65', 69', Robben 87')

Bayern Munich scored eight goals without reply in a rout of hapless Hamburg.

Bayern opened the scoring inside 17 minutes when David Alaba, Thomas Müller and then Arturo Vidal combined, with the Chilean driving a low shot beyond Rene Adler.

Robert Lewandowski's penalty after Müller was fouled seven minutes later put daylight between the leaders and the strugglers, and the Pole doubled his tally for the afternoon before the break, scoring on the rebound after Douglas Costa's shot was blocked.

Lewandowski had his hattrick just nine minutes into the second half, stroking the ball into the bottom corner after a beautiful backheel from Arjen Robben created the chance.

Bayern made it five moments later through Alaba, who swept the ball into an empty net after Müller unselfishly squared the ball to his teammate.

Substitute Kinglsey Coman added a sixth, latching onto Mats Hummels' long ball and Johan Djourou's mistake to finish past Adler, and then a seventh – lashing in from the edge of the box after further hesitant defending by Djourou.

Robben completed the rout with a mazy run and finish that made it 8-0 late on.

RB Leipzig 3-1 Cologne

(Forsberg 5', Maroh og 34', Werner 65' - Osako 53')

RB Leipzig kept Bayern Munich in their sights with a deserved 3-1 win over Cologne.

Emil Forsberg drew first blood inside five minutes, waltzing into a shooting position and drilling a low shot under Thomas Kessler in the Cologne goal.

Cologne shot themselves in the foot when some calamitous defending saw them concede another before the break. Naby Keita's dangerous cross caused confusion in the visitors' defence, and Dominic Maroh turned it into his own net.

Leipzig's lead was sliced in half soon after the break when Yuya Osako slid the reach a cross from the right, and steered the ball inside Peter Gulacsi's near post.

A swift counter-attack and fine finish from a tight angle saw Timo Werner restore Leipzig's two-goal cushion, which effectively ended the game as a contest.

Freiburg 0–3 Dortmund

(Sokratis 13', Aubameyang 55', 70')

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored his first goals in five games as Dortmund swept Freiburg aside.

Dortmund went ahead in the 13th minute through Sokratis, who steered the ball in from close range from Raphael Guerreiro's whipped free-kick.

Dortmund doubled their lead soon after the break through Aubameyang, who scored his first goal since scoring the winner against Leipzig in early February, tapping in after good work by Marco Reus.

Aubameyang scored Dortmund's third a few minutes later, drilling in from Erik Durm's pass to complete a good day's work for Thomas Tuchel's men.

Hertha Berlin 2-0 Eintracht Frankfurt
(Ibisevic 52', Darida 83')

Hertha Berlin scored two second half goals to beat ten-man Eintracht Frankfurt and go fifth.

After a dire first half, Hertha started the second half the stronger and took the lead through Vedad Ibisevic, who slotted the ball in after Salomon Kalou was bundled over.

Haris Seferovic made Frankfurt's task even harder when he was sent off, and Vladimir Darida's header from Max Mittelstädt's cross secured the victory.

Hertha are now level on points with fourth-placed Hoffenheim, who travel to Schalke on Sunday.

Bayer Leverkusen 0–2 Mainz

(Bell 3', Öztunali 11') 

Roger Schmidt is under increasing pressure after his side produced a poor display at home to Mainz.

Stefan Bell headed in to stun the BayArena in the third minute.

Mainz then doubled their lead soon after when Levin Öztunali's free-kick into the box missed everyone and fooled Bernd Leno in the Leverkusen goal, with the keeper reacting too late to keep it out.

Leverkusen improved after the break, but the damage was already done for Schmidt's struggling side.

Darmstadt 1–2 Augsburg

(Heller 47' - Verhaegh pen 55', Bobadilla 85')

Raul Bobadilla scored a late winner as Augsburg recovered from a goal down to win at struggling Darmstadt.

After tepid first half, Darmstadt flew out of the blocks at the start of the second half. Jerome Gondorf's cross from the right found its way through to the unmarked Marcel Heller at the far post, and the forward had plenty of time to take a touch and slot the ball home.

But Darmstadt couldn't hold onto their lead. Alexander Milosevic tripped Dominik Kohr in the box and Paul Verhaegh stepped up to squeeze his penalty past Michael Esser.

Augsburg completed the turnaround five minutes from time, with Bobadilla beating the offside trap and dinking the ball neatly over Esser.

Mario Mandzukic inspires Juventus to easy Empoli win

Mario Mandzukic overcame a wasteful first half to inspire Juventus to a 2-0 home win over Empoli that edged the Turin giants closer to a record sixth straight Serie A title.

Juventus, claiming their 22nd win in 26 games, moved 10 points clear of closest challengers Roma ahead of their visit to Inter Milan late on Sunday.

Napoli remain third but are now 12 points off the pace after a shock 2-0 defeat at home to Atalanta virtually ended their hopes of challenging for a long-awaited scudetto.

Juventus are also challenging for a third consecutive league and cup double and coach Massimiliano Allegri underlined those ambitions by resting several players for Tuesday?s semi-final first leg with Napoli.

The 'keeper's gloves went to Brazilian Norberto Neto after Gianluigi Buffon was rested, while Dani Alves and Daniele Rugani stepped in for veteran defenders Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini, both on the bench.

Argentine playmaker Paulo Dybala also started on the bench but given Empoli's miserable record at Juventus Stadium there was little to suggest Allegri's choices would backfire.

Yet Empoli were a tough nut to crack in a balanced opening half that saw plenty of home chances, most by Mandzukic, go amiss.

After just five minutes Gonzalo Higuain prodded a Mandzukic knock-down straight at Lukasz Skorupski in the Empoli net from six yards.

Mandzukic then slid in at the back post only to direct Juan Cuadrado?s deflected shot wide and on the counter Omar El Kaddouri spurned a great chance for the visitors.

The Croat Mandzukic should have done better after running on to Higuain's perfect pass, but hesitated on a one-on-one with Skorupski and allowed defenders to track back.

Mandzukic was at full stretch to meet another great pass from Higuain at the back post, but did better minutes after the interval when he rose high above the Empoli defence to meet Cuadrado's weighted delivery.

His powerful header beat Skorupski, smacked off the underside of the crossbar and eventually cleared the line after bouncing back off the splayed 'keeper and into the net for a 52nd minute own goal.

Former Barcelona star Alves hit Juve's second in Porto last Wednesday when he coolly chested down Alex Sandro's cross to beat Iker Casillas.

The Brazilian returned the favour for his countryman in the 65th minute. Sandro was left unmarked on the left side of the area in the 65th minute to pivot around his marker and beat Skorupski with a low angled drive at his far post.

Earlier, a brace from Juventus-bound Mattia Caldara torpedoed Napoli's scudetto hopes as 10-man Atalanta underlined their growing Euro ambitions in style with a shock 2-0 win at the San Paolo.

Napoli welcomed high-flying Atalanta looking to tighten their grip on the third and last Champions League qualifying spot.

But less than a week after suffering a 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in the competition, Maurizio Sarri's men saw a 14-game unbeaten streak ended by their second successive league defeat to Gian Piero Gasperini's men.

Atalanta's 16th win moved the Bergamo side up to fourth, ahead of Inter Milan before they welcome Roma to the San Si

Wellington Phoenix keep touch with top six after stunning Roar

Wellington Phoenix have kept their Hyundai A-League Finals Series hopes alive after recording a 2-1 upset win over Brisbane Roar at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
 Goals in either half to Shane Smeltz and Roy Krishna proved decisive as Des Buckingham’s side bounced back from last week’s horror 5-1 loss at home to Melbourne City.   
Brisbane started the brighter and should have taken the lead just before the half-hour mark with Thomas Broich failing to beat Glen Moss after being played in on goal by Brandon Borrello. And the miss proved costly with Shane Smeltz firing Wellington ahead less than five minutes later after a brilliant cross from Adam Parkhouse. 
The Phoenix grew in confidence after the goal and started to dictate the tempo as the game progressed, with the hosts appearing to struggle physically after a heavy schedule in recent weeks. 
Wellington enjoyed the majority of possession in the early stages of the second stanza and took full advantage with Roy Krishna doubling the lead on the hour mark following a well-worked team move. Brisbane fought their way back into the contest and pulled a goal back with Brandon Borelllo netting a sweet strike from distance with just over 15 minutes remaining. 
The Roar continued to push for an equaliser but Wellington held firm to keep touch with the Hyundai A-League top six.

GOALS 
0-1 Wellington Phoenix: Shane Smeltz, 32’ Phoenix fullback Adam Parkhouse found space down the left flank and whipped in a delightful cross which picked out an unmarked Shane Smeltz in the area, with the striker burying a clinical header into the left corner. 
0-2 Wellington Phoenix: Roy Krishna, 61’ Shane Smeltz played a delightful ball in behind for Kosta Barbarouses with the winger firing a well-weighted ball across the face of goal for Krishna to slot home from close range.
1-2 Brisbane Roar: Brandon Borrello, 75’ Substitute Joey Katebian found space in the box before teeing up Borrello on the edge of the area with the youngster hitting a sublime first-time strike which curled into the far corner, leaving Glen Moss with no chance.

Rojas stars as Melbourne Victory outclass Adelaide

Melbourne Victory’s premiership chances remain alive after Marco Rojas and Besart Berisha consigned Adelaide United to a 2-1 defeat at AAMI Park on Saturday night.

Rojas’ superb 66th minute free-kick and a clinical late second from Berisha pushed Victory back to within eight points of leaders Sydney FC.

Adelaide were energetic throughout the first-half but had teenage goalkeeper Daniel Margush to thank for a pair of excellent saves either side of half-time. Rojas finally broke the Reds’ resistence with a wonderful curling free-kick just after the hour and might have doubled it soon after had his header not crashed back off the crossbar. It was instead left to Berisha to seal all three points with an expert outside-of-the-boot finish as he became just the third man after Archie Thompson and Alex Brosque to score 50 Hyundai A-League goals for a single club. 

Tarek Elrich fired home a late consolation for the visitors but it wasn’t enough to keep Victory from registering a crucial 13th win of the season 

GOALS

 1-0 Victory: Rojas, 66’ Scythed down outside the area, Rojas stepped up calmly and brilliantly swept his free-kick over the wall and inside the near post.

 2-0 Victory: Berisha, 82’ Confronted by two defenders, Berisha opted instead to curl home an exquisite finish with the outside of his boot. 

2-1 Adelaide: Elrich, 90’ Elrich made no mistake in latching onto Marc Marino’s classy flick-on, lashing the ball first-time past Lawrence Thomas..

James's late triple lifts Panathinaikos over Unics Kazan

In a thriller that went down to the final second, Panathinaikos Superfoods Athens grabbed its third consecutive win by downing Unics Kazan 83-82 in the Greek capital on Friday.

 Panathinaikos improved to 14-9 in the standings and recorded its seventh straight home win, while Unics dropped to 7-16 after losing its last six games. Mike James hit the game-winning three-point shot with 0.9 seconds remaining. Ioannis Bourousis led the winners with 15 points.

 Chris Singleton added 14, K.C. Rivers had 13 and Kenny Gabriel and Alessandro Gentile each scored 10 for Panathinaikos. Keith Langford led Unics with 21 points and 7 assists. 

Quino Colom added 17, Latavious Williams had 13 while Pavel Antipov got 11 for the guests. Langford dominated early, but the Panathinaikos defense stalled him as he did not record a single assist in the second half nor a point in the fourth quarter.

Langford got Unics going with a jumper and Colom struck from downtown for a 2-5 lead. James Feldeine swished a step-back jumper, Gentile added consecutive layups and a three-pointer by Gabriel gave Panathinaikos an 11-7 lead. 

Colom kept pushing Unics with a baseline jumper, Coty Clarke struck from downtown and a dunk by Williams restored a 15-16 Unics edge. 

Gentile and James stepped up for Panathinaikos, but an unstoppable Langford kept Unics in charge, 24-25, after 10 minutes. 

Antipov followed an up-and-under layup with a corner triple for a 26-30 lead early in the second quarter. 

Art Parakhouski stepped up for Unics and a floater by Danilo Andjusic made it a 7-point game. Bourousis and Nikos Pappas tried to change things for Panathinaikos, but free throws by Langford, Clarke and Colom kept Unics in charge, 39-46, at halftime. Langford kept pushing Unics after the break, but he didn't find much help around. Meanwhile, Nick Calathes and Singleton brought Panathinaikos within 46-49.

 Langford and Parakhouski rescued Unics, but three-pointers by Gabriel and Rivers brought the hosts within 52-56. Antipov answered from downtown and Langford beat the buzzer with a driving layup for a 52-61 lead after 30 minutes. 

A free throw by Langford made it a double-digit game, 52-62, early in the fourth quarter. Bourousis, Singleton and Rivers each hit a triple in a 13-3 run that tied the game, 65-65, with less than six minutes left. Colom struck twice from beyond the arc, but a big basket by Bourousis kept the hosts within 69-73 with three minutes to go. 

A layup by Williams and a three-pointer by Andjusic seemed to seal the outcome at 73-79, but Rivers and Singleton brought Panathinaikos as close as 79-80 with 49.8 seconds left. Langford missed a driving shot, but he fouled on Singleton with 15.8 seconds left. Singleton split attempts to tie the game and Panathinaikos sent Williams to the foul line with 7.8 seconds to go. Williams hit both attempts, but James raced downcourt faked and drilled the game-winning three-point shot with 0.9 seconds remaining.

The Europa League Last 16 Draw

The draw for the last 16 of the Europa League has just concluded in Nyon and Serie A’s lone representative still left in the competition, Roma, have been given a trick tie against Lyon. Favourites Manchester United will face Russian side Rostov, there is an all-German affair as Schalke04 face Borussia Monchengladbach and an all-Belgian contest with Spurs’ conquerors’ Gent taking on Genk.
 

The draw in full:

Celta Vigo v Krasnodar

APOEL v Anderlecht

Schalke 04 v Borussia Monchengladbach

Lyon v Roma

Rostov v Manchester United

Olympiacos v Besiktas

Gent v Genk
​FC Copenhagen v Ajax