Sports

MIAMI — Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa returns to practice on Wednesday for the first time since suffering a concussion last month and could play this weekend, Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said on Monday.

Tagovailoa, who has a history of concussions raising concern over his health, must still clear the NFL’s concussion protocol to be able to take the field against Arizona on Sunday.

“Our plan is to start him practicing on Wednesday,” McDaniel said.

“The clearing doesn’t come until after some of the activity, but we’re doing so in the hope of everything going well so he can play on Sunday, but that’s to be determined.”

Tagovailoa, who signed a four-year deal worth $212.4 million last July, suffered a concussion in a loss to Buffalo on September 12 and was later placed on injured reserve after a third diagnosed concussion in two years.

“I’ve been symptom-free from the next day after the game,” Tagovailoa said.

Many called for Tagovailoa to retire after so many head injuries, but the 26-year-old Hawaiian said, “I wasn’t paying attention to any of it.”

“Had some conversations with my wife but that was it.”

Asked what he would say to those concerned for his health, Tagovailoa said, “I appreciate your concern. I really do. I love this game and I love it to the death of me.”

Doctors have told him the long-term risks of so many concussions but Tagovailoa refuses to give up the sport he loves.

“There’s a gray area when it comes to that, if you’re going to get long-term disease or are not,” he said. “This is what makes me happy and I’m going to do it. That’s it.

“Every time we all suit up, we’re all taking a risk we could potentially get hurt... I’m willing to play the odds. That’s it.”

Tagovailoa indicated he would remain a run and pass threat, the latest injury not changing how he plays.

“I’ve just got to be smart,” said Tagovailoa. “Got to stay more available for the team, for the organisation, for my guys.”

The Dolphins, who have not scored more than 20 points in a game all season, have lost three of four games since Tagovailoa’s concussion, falling to 2-4 on the campaign.

“The reason he’s coming back now is because the medical experts have deemed it safe for him to return,” McDaniel said. “I don’t mess with timelines or try to overcook or forecast. You lean on experts on matters of the career and that’s what we’re doing here.”

Tagovailoa suffered two diagnosed concussions in the 2022 campaign and was controversially kept in another contest that led to changes in NFL concussion protocol.

“What I know is the team did what’s in best in the interests of me,” he said of his latest benching.

“Given what the doctors have told me, having a substantial amount of time to rest and recover, they did what was best, protecting myself from myself.”

NFL players this season have been allowed to wear Guardian Cap helmets this season in a bid to prevent head injuries, but Tagovailoa said he would not adopt the larger headgear.

“Personal choice”, Tagovailoa said.

The Dolphins hope to make a turnaround with Tagovailoa back in the lineup, but he isn’t seeing himself in a season savior role.

“I don’t put any pressure on myself coming back and having to save the team,” Tagovailoa said.

Tagovailoa said it has been “frustrating” being stuck on the sidelines but he has attended team meetings and tried to be a leader off the field as needed.

“It has been a different type of way of leading,” he said.

AMMAN — Wihdat and Hussein resume Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Champions League Two Round 3 matches as of Tuesday as standings begin to take shape in the 21st edition of the competition.

Aiming to retain their Group C lead, Wihdat will play an away game against Tajikistan’s Istiklol on Tuesday. So far, Wihdat were held 2-2 with UAE’s Sharjah after they scored  a vital 2-1 win over Iran’s Sepahan Isfahan. In other group matches, Sepahan beat Istiklol 4-0 after Sharjah beat Istiklol 1-0.

On the other hand, compatriots Hussein might have a tougher task as they host Uzbekistan’s Nasaf Qarshi on Wednesday as they moved to third in Group D following a 2-1 win over Kuwait Club after falling 3-1 to UAE’s Ahli Dubai. In other matches, Nasaf beat Ahli 2-1, and Kuwait held Nasaf 0-0.  

Clubs are playing in 8 groups with the top two in each group moving to the quarters of the second tier Asian event that has replaced the AFC Cup. The top tier Asian clubs competition is now branded Asian Champions League Elite.

BARCELONA — Red-hot Robert Lewandowski and Pablo Torre struck twice each as Barcelona hammered Sevilla 5-1 to stay three points clear of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga ahead of next weekend's Clasico.

Earlier Alexander Sorloth's double helped Atletico Madrid, third, come from behind to beat neighbours Leganes 3-1.

Madrid beat Celta Vigo on Saturday to pull level with Hansi Flick's side but Barca swiftly restored their advantage with a stylish and dominant display of attacking football.

Veteran striker Lewandowski reached 12 goals in 10 La Liga matches, his strikes sandwiching Pedri Gonzalez's effort from the edge of the box, before substitute Torre added the fourth.

Stanis Idumbo grabbed a consolation for Sevilla in the final stages but Francisco Garcia Pimienta's side were roundly beaten on his return to the club he spent nearly three decades with in various roles.

Torre finished the rout with a crossed free-kick which flew beyond Nyland and in at the far post and Barcelona were also able to celebrate Gavi's return from a long injury lay-off.

The midfielder came on in the final stages for his first minutes in a Barcelona shirt since suffering a severe knee injury in November 2023.

"It's too difficult, it's not easy [to pick a highlight]," said Flick.

"Three points and five goals... but we are all happy that Gavi's back."

Despite upcoming clashes against Bayern Munich in the Champions League and Saturday's visit to the Santiago Bernabeu, Flick started arguably his strongest fit and available side.

As well as Gavi, the coach was able to name Dani Olmo and Fermin Lopez on the bench after injury, while Ansu Fati started for the first time this season.

The Catalans took the lead when Raphinha went down in the box under light contact from Peque, a former Barca youth player, and the referee pointed to the spot.

Lewandowski, stuttering in his run-up, sent Sevilla goalkeeper Orjan Nyland the wrong way to fire Barca ahead in the 24th minute.

The 36-year-old striker is enjoying a second wind under Flick and leads Spain's scoring charts with 12 strikes in 10 matches, twice as many as any other player.

Pedri soon doubled Barcelona's lead from the edge of the box after the hyperactive Lamine Yamal set him up and created another fine chance for Lewandowski.

Gavi 'deserves this' 

The Polish striker netted his second before the break by guiding home Raphinha's drive from distance with a flick of his boot.

Suffering Sevilla were dealt more bad news before the break when explosive winger Chidera Ejuke limped off injured.

Raphinha fired home early in the second half but was offside, as Barcelona strolled, carving open the Andalucians at their leisure.

Yamal produced an outrageous shot from distance with the outside of his boot which Nyland clawed to safety.

Dodi Lukebakio struck at the other end on a rare Sevilla foray forward but had strayed offside.

Barca midfielder Pablo Torre rattled home the fourth with the aid of a deflection before Gavi appeared as a substitute with a few minutes remaining to a rapturous reception.

"I am very happy to come back after so long out injured, I have been dreaming about this for many months and I am grateful to my teammates who made the process easier for me," Gavi told LaLiga TV.

"The hardest thing is not playing, watching from the outside. It's frustrating, it's tough... I feel fortunate to be back."

Idumbo pulled one back for Sevilla, 13th, but Torre wrapped up Barcelona's night with a stroke of fortune when his free-kick crept in at the far post.

Sorloth double 

Diego Simeone's Atletico struggled against the minnows from the south of Madrid but after Yvan Neyou blasted the visitors ahead Sorloth levelled with a fine finish and Antoine Griezmann slid home the second.

Norwegian target man Sorloth wrapped up the victory late in stoppage time with a poacher's finish.

"In the second half we improved a bit, above all in speeding up the game," Simeone told Movistar.

Atletico came into the game with just one victory in their last five matches across all competitions.

No supporters filled the lower part of the Metropolitano stadium's south stand, closed by the Spanish football federation after some Atletico fans threw objects at Real Madrid players during the derby in September.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Novak Djokovic implored long-time rival Rafael Nadal to put off his planned retirement after defeating the Spaniard in what was likely to be the final chapter of their storied rivalry.

"Don't leave tennis, man," Djokovic said in an on-court interview after beating Nadal in straight sets 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) at the "Six Kings Slam" exhibition in Saudi Arabia.

He added that their battles over the years had been "very intense" and told Nadal he hoped they could one day "sit on a beach somewhere" and have a drink.

Nadal, 38, announced on October 10 that he would retire from tennis after the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga next month.

Organisers of the Saudi event billed Saturday's match as perhaps Nadal's last singles contest as a professional.

Nadal said on Thursday he was unsure whether he would be fit enough to play singles in Malaga.

Djokovic and Nadal -- two of the sport's famed "Big Three" along with Roger Federer -- had faced each other 60 times on the main tour prior to Saturday's exhibition match, with Djokovic holding a narrow 31-29 edge.

Their last encounter came during the Paris Olympics on the same Roland Garros courts where Nadal won 14 French Open titles, though Djokovic triumphed easily 6-1, 6-4.

Saturday's match was also mostly one-sided, with Nadal spraying errors and Djokovic wrapping up the first set in just 31 minutes.

Feeding off the support of the partisan crowd who openly cheered Djokovic's double-faults, Nadal rallied to push the second set to a tie-break, reeling off winners and even treating fans to one last iconic fist pump before succumbing to Djokovic's relentless serving.

"It's great to see him still fighting even though he's had injuries and struggles," Djokovic, 37, told a post-match press conference.

It was "a very emotional day, special day" because it was the "last time I play my biggest rival, Nadal", he added.

"I've witnessed Andy Murray retiring this year in Wimbledon, Roger [Federer] a few years ago as well. And now Rafa, you know. It's tough in some way to see them go, because all of my career, basically, I've played with them."

After being presented with a golden tennis racket, Nadal in turn thanked Djokovic for the "amazing rivalry" and "for all the moments that we shared on court".

Saudi tennis push 

French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz was set to take on Australian Open and US Open winner Jannik Sinner in the "Six Kings Slam" final later Saturday.

Saudi Arabia's push into tennis took off last year with its first ATP Tour event -- the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah -- and exhibition matches pitting Djokovic against Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka against Ons Jabeur.

The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) announced in April that Riyadh would host the next three editions of the Tour Finals, featuring the top eight singles players and doubles teams.

The 2024 edition will be staged from November 2-9.

Earlier this year, Nadal was named ambassador for the Saudi Tennis Federation.

The new role will involve "dedicated time in the kingdom each year" to grow the sport as well as the development of a new Rafa Nadal Academy, the Saudi federation said when the announcement was made in January.

Djokovic said he did not know if he, like Nadal, would spend more time in Saudi Arabia post-retirement but he said he was focussing on what he described as the positives there.

"There's always going to be criticism. You can always focus on good things or bad things," he said.

"You know, it just depends on the perspective, like anything in life."

AMMAN — Group A U-17 Asian Cup qualifiers kick off in Ammanas of October 19 with Jordan playing in alongside Iran, Syria, Hong Kong and North Korea.  

A total of 43 teams will be playing in 10 groups with the group leaders as well as five second placed teams advancing to the April 3-20, 2025 finals in Saudi Arabia. Jordan kicks off matches against Syria on Saturday, followed by Hong Kong October 23, North Korea on October 25 and Iran October 27.  

In 2022, Jordan hosted Group A qualifiers for the U-17 Asian Cup but failed to advance.  The team also could not retain their West Asian Championship title and exited Round  1.

Last month, Jordan qualified to the U-20 Asian Cup scheduled for China in February 2025 - a qualifying tournament to the U-20 World Cup. The 45 Asian teams played the AFC qualifiers in 10 groups, with the group winners and five best second-placed teams advancing to the finals. Qualifying teams were Qatar, Syria, Uzbekistan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Australia, North Korea, Indonesia, Yemen, Iran from Group G, Iraq, Thailand, Japan and Kyrgyzstan.

AMMAN —  The CFI Professional Football League resumes on Thursday after  a two week break during which the national team played two Round 3/ Group B qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup, losing 2-0 to South Korea and beating Oman 4-0.

Ramtha lead Hussein and Ahli on goal difference with Wihdat and Faisali trailing. Upcoming matches will see Ramtha play Ma’an with a chance to bolster their lead and Faisali playing holders Hussein. Wihdat face Shabab Urdun, Aqaba play Ahli, Jazira meet Salt and Sarih face Mughayer Sarhan. 

During the league break Jordan Football Shield matches continued without national team players. The competition has one round to go and will resume on November 8 after Hussein moved to the semifinals leaving Wihdat and Shabab Urdun fighting for the second spot from Group 1, while Faisali, Salt, Ramtha and Sarih are still competing for the two tickets from Group 2. 

Hussein have been impressive with four consecutive wins, despite missing 10 players on national team duty and also juggling their regional agenda together with Wihdat representing Jordan in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Champions League Two, the 21st edition of the second tier competition which has replaced the AFC Cup.

So far, Wihdat were held 2-2 with UAE’s Sharjah after they scored  a vital 2-1 win over Iran’s Sepahan Isfahan in Group C while Hussein beat Kuwait Club 2-1  after they fell 3-1 to UAE’s Ahli Dubai in Group D.

Amman — In an efficient display on Tuesday, the Jordanian national team “Nashama” defeated Oman 4-0 in the World Cup qualification Round 4 at the Amman International Stadium. Under the management of coach Jamal Sellami the squad controlled the pace of the match from start to finish.

The game kicked off with Jordan taking the initiative and in the 26th minute Yazan Al Naimat opened the scoring with a powerful header, setting a positive tone for the rest of the game.

As the second half progressed, Jordan continued to push forward. In the 49th minute Ali Alwan converted a penalty to double the lead while five minutes later, in the 54th minute, Yazan Al Nueimat struck again, netting his second goal of the match.

In the 87th minute, Awan capped off the performance with his second goal, bringing the final score to 4-0. His contributions, alongside Nueimat’s were crucial in securing the second victory in the group.

The score reflected Jordan comprehensive dominance throughout the match and Coach Sellami will undoubtedly be gratified with the outcome, which boosts the team's confidence as they continue the World Cup qualifying journey.

With this victory, Jordan now sits in second place in its  group with seven points, behind  South Korea, which leads with 10 points after its 3-2 win over Iraq. Iraq also has seven points, while Oman remains at the bottom with just three points. Meanwhile, Kuwait is in fifth place with three points after drawing 1-1 with Palestine, which sets the last position in the group with two points.

Jordan’s next group matches will be in November when it faces Iraq and Kuwait in away matches.

JOHANNESBURG — Embattled Ghana coach Otto Addo says they must beat Sudan in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Tuesday to have a chance of reaching the 2025 finals.

“We have to win,” the 49-year-old in a second stint as Black Stars boss told reporters after they were held 0-0 at home by Sudan in a third-round Group F clash.

Four-time African champions Ghana squandered several glaring chances to break the deadlock in Accra, and trail leaders Angola by seven points and Sudan by two halfway through qualifying.

The top two finishers after matchday 6 in November secure places at the 24-team finals of a competition Ghana last won in 1982 in Tripoli. 

They last failed to qualify 21 years ago.

Ghana faces a desperate fight for survival in Libyan city Benghazi, where Sudan is temporarily based as they cannot play at home with a civil war raging in the vast northeast African country.

“Where we finish is in our hands,” added Otto, referring to a team captained by Mohammed Kudus of West Ham, but missing another Premier League midfielder, injured Thomas Partey of Arsenal.

Here, AFP Sport highlights five other matchday 4 qualifiers scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, including former champions Tunisia seeking revenge for a shock home defeat by Comoros.

Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana was mobbed by football fans in Uganda last month after a Group J clash with Zimbabwe, who could not play at home as they lack a suitable venue.

But Ugandan supporters of the Old Trafford club will not be able to see him playing in Kampala on Monday because Kenya, 4-1 losers in Yaounde, are hosting the return match behind closed doors.

Kenya cannot play at home due to stadium renovations and their reasons for barring spectators include cost cutting, ensuring the safety of Onana and preventing Ugandans backing Cameroon.

Libya vs Nigeria

It will concern caretaker coach Augustine Eguavoen that Nigeria took 86 minutes in Uyo before Fisayo Dele-Bashiru scored the only goal to sink Libya in Group D.

He was spoilt for choice when it came to forwards, with the seven he chose in the absence of injured star Victor Osimhen all playing for top-five European leagues clubs.

But Ademola Lookman, the lone African contender for the 2024 Ballon d’Or, and his Super Eagles teammates misfired, and now face the Mediterranean Knights in an intimidating Benghazi venue.

Mauritania vs Egypt

Mauritania coach Amir Abdou is puzzled after his team was described by Egypt counterpart Hossam Hassan as “playing hard and with violent interventions”.

“We committed fewer fouls than Egypt and received the same number of yellow cards [three],” he told reporters after a 2-0 Group C loss in Cairo to the runaway leaders.

Liverpool ace Mohamed Salah, scorer of the Pharaohs’ second goal, will miss the return match on an artificial Nouakchott pitch because Hassan does not want to risk his captain being injured.

Congo vs South Africa

South Africa coach Hugo Broos has warned his squad that Congo Brazzaville are likely to be a very different proposition at home after suffering a 5-0 matchday 3 drubbing in Group K.

“The Congolese are technically good and very dangerous when they play at home,” said the 72-year-old Belgian, who coached Cameroon to the 2017 AFCON title.

Broos will be hoping for another five-star showing from midfielder Teboho Mokoena, who shrugged off fears of rustiness due to lack of club game time by scoring twice.

Comoros vs Tunisia

The major matchday 3 shock came when Tunisia surrendered a 16-match winning streak at home in AFCON qualifiers by losing 1-0 to Comoros.

Rafiki Said from French second division club Troyes completed a mid-second half counterattack by slamming a low shot into the far corner from inside the box.

Comoros are 82 places below Tunisia in the world rankings and lack an international-standard stadium, so they will host the return match in Ivorian commercial capital Abidjan.