BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) ― Aston Villa moved closer to avoiding relegation from the Premier League after Christian Benteke scored a second-half hat trick in a 6-1 thrashing of Sunderland on Monday.The Belgian international scored in the 55th, 60th and 72nd minutes at Villa Park to tally 22 league goals and 27 in all competitions in his first season at the club.More importantly, Villa moved five points clear of Wigan in the final relegation place. Sunderland, Villa and Newcastle are all on 37 poi

April 30, 2013

Hopes of further advance hang in the balance for two South Korean teams at the top Asian club competition this week.Pohang Steelers of the K League Classic face a must-win situation as they host Bunyodkor of Uzbekistan in the Group G finale at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the AFC Champions League.Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors have a bit more breathing room, as they take on Guangzhou Evergrande on the road on Wednesday at 9 p.m., Korean time. They can clinch first place with a win, and with some help from other te

April 29, 2013

BARCELONA (AP) ― Barcelona gave up a tying goal in the 90th minute, spoiling a great performance by Lionel Messi in a 2-2 draw with Athletic Bilbao. The outcome means the leaders must wait another week for a chance to clinch the Spanish league title.With his team trailing 1-0, Messi came off the bench in the 59th minute to transform his club and in 10 minutes the visitors were in front.Messi extended his record run of scoring in 20 straight league appearances when he dribbled through a pack of d

April 28, 2013

GENEVA (AP) ― David Luiz scored with the final kick of the match to clinch a 2-1 win for Chelsea at Basel in a Europa League semifinal, first leg on Thursday. Luiz deceived goalkeeper Yann Sommer with a free kick in the fourth minute of stoppage time after Basel defender Fabian Schaer had equalized with a disputed 87th-minute penalty. “A draw 1-1 is a good result but 2-1 is better, and me and the team are so happy with this,” Luiz said. Chelsea, the Champions League winner seeking back-to-back E

April 26, 2013

FC Seoul became the first South Korean side to qualify for the knockout stage at the AFC Champions League this week, while three other representatives for the country had mixed fortunes at the premier club football competition in Asia.FC Seoul clinched first place in Group E with a 2-0 win over Jiangsu Sainty of China. The tournament’s opening stage features eight groups of four clubs, and only the top two teams from each group reach the round of 16. FC Seoul, the 2012 K League Classic champion,

April 25, 2013

DORTMUND, Germany (AP) ― Borussia Dortmund followed Bayern Munich’s lead in upending a Spanish power.Robert Lewandowski scored four goals to lead Dortmund over Real Madrid 4-1 Wednesday night in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal.“It was a royal evening for us,” Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Guendogan said, playing on “real,” the Spanish word for “royal.”Bayern Munich routed Barcelona 4-0 a night earlier, making it likely Europe’s top club competition will have an all-German final for

April 25, 2013

With 75,000 delirious Manchester United fans chanting “champions, champions” at full voice, Rio Ferdinand tugged the back of Robin van Persie's shirt bearing his squad number and shouted: “No. 20, No. 20.”Twenty was the number at Old Trafford on Monday.United produced a performance of style and swagger to extend its record haul of English league titles to 20, overwhelming Aston Villa 3-0 to wrap up the championship with four matches to spare and reclaim the trophy from local rival Manchester Cit

April 23, 2013

Four South Korean football clubs will enter the final stretch of the top continental competition this week with berths in the knockout phase on the line.FC Seoul, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, Pohang Steelers and Suwon Bluewings of the K League Classic will each play their penultimate matches of the group stage at the AFC Champions League.On Tuesday, Pohang will be in the Chinese capital to face Beijing Guoan in Group G. The teams played to a scoreless draw in their first meeting in February.Also on T

April 22, 2013

South Korean soccer club Gyeongnam FC will host Queens Park Rangers of the English Premier League in an exhibition game this summer, Gyeongnam officials said Monday.The K League Classic club said QPR will visit on July 19 for the match. The London-based team has two South Koreans, Park Ji-sung and Yun Suk-young, on its roster.Gyeongnam FC, based in Changwon, South Gyeongsan Province, said the exact time and venue for the match have not yet been determined, but that QPR has agreed to play Park an

April 22, 2013

LONDON (AP) ― Manchester United was slowed in its drive to a 20th English league title when it was held to a 2-2 tie Tuesday night at West Ham.Ricardo Vaz Te put the Hammers ahead in the 16th minute but Antonio Valencia tied the score in the 31st with his first goal since April 2 last year against Blackburn.Mohamed Diame gave West Ham a 2-1 lead in the 55th, and Robin van Persie retied the match in the 77th. Shinji Kagawa’s initial shot hit both posts and Van Persie ― who appeared to be in an of

April 18, 2013

LONDON (AP) ― A fan punches a police horse as the streets of Newcastle are turned into a battleground. Bloodied supporters brawl inside Wembley Stadium as weeping youngsters watch on. Fighting erupts at train stations as hooligans hurl racist abuse.English football has been in a time warp this weekend, with a return of the crowd trouble that stained the national game in the 1970s and 80s when its fans were the pariahs of Europe.Almost 80 fans were arrested as violence spread from stadiums to the

April 16, 2013

Ji Dong-won scored two goals to carry his FC Augsburg to a 2-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday, reviving the team’s hopes of keeping its spot in the first-division Bundesliga.Playing in a vital home match against Frankfurt, the South Korean netted a goal 28 minutes into the game, and another in the second half. It was the third goal of the season for Ji, who has played in the German league since January. It was the first time the 22-year-old has scored more than one goal in a European

April 15, 2013

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 49th and 50th goals in all competitions this season as Real Madrid won 3-0 at Athletic Bilbao on Sunday, while Barcelona didn’t need Lionel Messi to brush aside Real Zaragoza 3-0 and ease closer to the Spanish league title.Ronaldo opened with a dipping free kick two minutes in and scored again in the 69th, before passing for Gonzalo Higuain to net a third in the 76th.“We have a great player in Ronaldo,” Madrid midfielder Xabi Alonso said. “He is so competitive. He wa

April 15, 2013