Sports

AUSTIN, Texas — Lewis Hamilton will be aiming for a big win in Texas this weekend, even if the Formula One starting grid is the smallest he has ever known it with the absence of backmarker teams Marussia and Caterham.

The 29-year-old Mercedes driver can become the first British driver to win 10 races in a single season and join Nigel Mansell and the late Jim Clark as the only Britons to win five races in succession.

Another triumph at the Circuit of the Americas, where he won the inaugural race in 2012, would also set him apart from his compatriots with 32 victories — one more than the record he currently shares with 1992 champion Mansell.

But most important of all, Hamilton can land another big psychological blow on German teammate and title rival Nico Rosberg who is 17 points adrift with 100 still to be won from the last three races.

Hamilton loves the Texas circuit, whereas Rosberg has mixed feelings about it, and arrives with Mercedes on a high after wrapping up the constructors’ title in Sochi.

The intention is to turn the focus back to the track after a gloomy week for the sport dominated by talk of financial crisis and teams going into administration, while seriously injured French driver Jules Bianchi is ever-present in everyone’s thoughts.

“We still have three races left to decide the Drivers’ Championship — starting in Austin, which is one of the best weekends of the year,” said the Briton this week.

“A lot of the American side of my family come to the race, plus I won the first ever Formula One Grand Prix at the circuit back in 2012, so it’s a special one for me.

“I really enjoy going there and I’m looking forward to another great race — hopefully ending up with another Stetson hat on the top step of the podium.”

Rosberg’s record is less happy, with the German’s best finish in Austin a ninth place last year when Hamilton was fourth.

“It’s still all to play for... and I won’t be giving up the fight until the flag drops in Abu Dhabi,” he said. “Hopefully we can keep the entertainment going right to the end for the fans out there enjoying the contest.”

Driver duel

With the constructors’ title out of the way, the driver duel will move up a gear even if mathematically it is still a three-way battle.

Red Bull’s Australian Daniel Ricciardo, the only driver other than the Mercedes duo to win races this year, is 92 points adrift of Hamilton but as good as ruled out.

So too is quadruple world champion teammate Sebastian Vettel, last year’s race winner, who is in danger of collecting an engine penalty that will see him starting from the pitlane in Austin.

“I think the reality is that Sebastian will take a sixth engine in Austin because it’s inevitable he’s going to have to use it,” team principal Christian Horner said after Russia. “I don’t think this engine can really go too much further.”

It could be that the German does very little mileage before the race to save the new engine, something that makes him just as unhappy as the fans will be.

“The rule is completely stupid,” he said. “So the people turn on the television and see a driver who just stands around and has nothing to do.”

Mercedes-powered Williams should be in the mix, however, with Valtteri Bottas on a fine run of form.

At the back, there will be the empty spaces where Marussia and Caterham usually line up after both teams went into administration within the space of a week. That leaves just 18 cars, the smallest number since 2005.

It also gives Sauber, who have yet to score this season, marginally more of a chance of regaining ninth place from Marussia in what is almost a home race for Mexican Esteban Gutierrez.

“I am looking forward to having great support from our fans there, which gives me extra motivation,” he said. “The track in Austin is one of my favourites, I love driving there.”

AMMAN — Interesting matches are lined up as Week 6 of the 63rd Jordan Professional League kicks off on Thursday.

Ramtha kept their lead after a fifth consecutive win (3-1) over neighbours Hussein. They will play Manshieh, who lost to titleholders Wihdat (3-1).

Wihdat are second and will face Shabab Urdun who went down 2-1 to Jazira as they jumped to third. Faisali, who were held 0-0 by Baqaa, are fourth and play That Ras.

Last week, Sarih scored their first win 1-0 over Ittihad Ramtha to climb up five spots to sixth. They will next play Hussein, who dropped to ninth. 

Ahli held That Ras 0-0 and moved up from last. They will play Ittihad Ramtha. 

Jordan Cup quarters  

This week, the Jordan Cup Leg 1 quarter-final matches saw Ahli hold Ramtha 1-1, That Ras beat Jazira 1-0, Wihdat beat Sarih 1-0 and Faisali beat Manshieh 2-1.

Leg 2 will be contested starting December 1. Baqaa, Shabab Urdun  and Hussein were eliminated earlier in the competition in which only league teams are competing this year. 

Wihdat won the first major competition of the 2014/15 football season calendar after they beat Baqaa 2-0 in the 32nd Super Cup.

Last season, Wihdat won the Jordan Professional League for the 13th time, and beat Baqaa to win the Jordan Cup while Shabab Urdun beat That Ras to win the Super Cup. The Jordan Football Association Federation Shield was not held.

AMMAN —  The U-19 women’s team is now gearing up to host Group A Asian qualifiers for the Asian Football Confederation U-19 Women’s Championship in 2015.

The team lost 2-0 to Amman Club this week and earlier drew its U-16 counterpart 1-1 in two matches. Following disappointing results of the U-16 as well as women’s senior teams, the U-19 squad will be under heavy scrutiny at home.

The team will play Lebanon, India and Uzbekistan in qualifiers in Amman from November 3-9 with the hope of qualifying for the second time after Jordan was the first Arab team to play in the 3rd AFC U-19 Women’s Championship finals in 2007. 

Fourteen teams will contest the qualifiers in four groups for four slots to the final, with the group leaders moving to the 2015 AFC U-19 Championship, which will be the 8th edition of the tournament. The top three teams qualify for the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. 

 “We are preparing according to a set plan and we will give it our best. We have had many obstacles, but we are trying to overcome them,” coach Khader Eid was quoted by the local media as saying following this week’s friendly.

This week, the U-16 girls football team returned home after failing to grab the sole qualifying berth from Group B Asian qualifiers for the 2015 AFC Under-16 Women’s Championship. Jordan only managed one win — 8-1 over the UAE. They lost to India (6-3), Iran (6-1) and Bangladesh (1-0). Jordan had qualified to the AFC U-16 Women’s Championship once in 2013. 

Earlier this year, the senior women’s team exited Round 1 of the Asian Games, tying Taiwan 2-2, losing to China 5-0 and suffering a crushing 12-0 defeat to Japan. Similarly, they exited the first round of their first AFC Women’s 2014 Asian Cup where they were the only Arab team to have ever qualified.

Jordan will host the 2016 U-17 Women’s World Cup and is now gearing up to implement executive plans to prepare four stadiums as well as 16 practice fields. Jordan beat bids from Uruguay, South Africa, Ireland and Bahrain. 

The Kingdom dropped four spots to 57th in the lastest FIFA Rankings but is still the top ranked Arab team and 12th ranked Asian team. Jordan won the West Asian title twice in 2005 and 2007, conceded to the UAE in 2010 and 2012 and regained it in 2014 as Iran, Lebanon, as well as, two-time champs and titleholders UAE missed the event.

BERNE — Germany dominated the FIFA Player of the Year shortlist, with six nominees among the 23 candidates announced on Tuesday, while the 10-man coaching shortlist was full of anomalies and controversy.

Juergen Klinsmann was included among the coaches after leading United States to the last 16 of the World Cup but Jorge Luis Pinto and Jose Pekerman, who took Costa Rica and Colombia respectively to the quarter-finals, were overlooked.

Jorge Sampaoli, whose hugely entertaining Chile side knocked out defending champions Spain on their way to the last 16, and Vahid Halilhodzic, who took an inspirational Algeria to the knockout stages, were also ignored.

On the other hand, there was room for Bayern Munich’s Pep Guardiola, even though his team’s most important match of the year, a Champions League semifinal at home to Real Madrid, ended in a 4-0 defeat.

Almost inevitably, Chelsea’s Jose Mourinho also sneaked in despite failing to land a trophy on his return to Stamford Bridge.

The players’ list showed similar anomalies and appeared to be based more on European club football than FIFA’s flagship tournament.

Manuel Neuer, Thomas Mueller, Toni Kroos, Mario Goetze, Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger were six players from world champions Germany to be included and beaten finalists Argentina had three, Lionel Messi, Angel Di Maria and Javier Mascherano.

Last year’s winner Cristiano Ronaldo was duly named along with his Real Madrid teammates Gareth Bale (Wales) and James Rodriguez (Colombia).

Manchester City and Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure was the only African player short-listed, Neymar was Brazil’s sole representative, and there were none at all from CONCACAF region or Asia.

Notable absentees included United States goalkeeper Tim Howard and Costa Rica stopper Keylor Navas, both outstanding in Brazil, and Costa Rica defender Giancarlo Gonzalez, who many critics saw as one of the tournament’s most influential players.

FIFA, who organise the award jointly with France Football, said the final three candidates for both awards, officially known as the Ballon d’Or, would be announced on December 1 with the award ceremony in Zurich on January 12.

“The list of 23 male candidates has been drawn up by football experts from the FIFA Football Committee and by a group of experts from France Football,” FIFA said.

“The list of ten coaches has been drawn up by the committee for Women’s Football and FIFA Women’s World Cup and by the FIFA Football Committee, as well as by a group of experts from France football.”

LONDON — Charlie Austin scored twice to lift Queens Park Rangers off the bottom of the Premier League with a 2-0 home win against Aston Villa on Monday.

Manager Harry Redknapp was under pressure after his struggling side had won just once in their opening eight games but a goal in either half from Austin helped lighten the mood at Loftus Road.

Aston Villa, beaten in their last five games without scoring a goal, started brightly but Austin calmed the home fans’ nerves when he lashed an excellent half volley into the bottom corner with 17 minutes gone.

As the visitors went in search of an equaliser the QPR striker struck again after 69 minutes with a deft side-footed finish inside Villa keeper Brad Guzan’s near post from an Eduardo Vargas cross.

The win lifted Redknapp’s side to 19th on seven points, ahead of Burnley on four, while Villa dropped to 15th in the table with their search for a league goal extending to over eight hours.

“It was an excellent performance,” Redknapp told Sky Sports television. “They dominated possession in the second half but once we put an extra man into midfield we started seeing more of the ball and hit the post before scoring a second.

“There’s no reason why Charlie Austin can’t score a lot of goals this season, I’m pleased for the lad.

“There’s nothing in the league in terms of points,” added Redknapp. “We’re only four points behind Hull in 10th.”

Villa had previously played last season’s top five league teams in consecutive fixtures, enduring a miserable run of four straight defeats, but any hopes of picking up easy points at QPR were soon dispelled.

All of QPR’s points this season have come at home and they proved to be difficult opposition again for Paul Lambert’s side.

Scenes of jubilation from the home fans were in stark contrast to Lambert’s men, who must be wondering where their next league goal is coming from.

Prolific marksmen Christian Benteke made only his second start since March but he drew a blank as Villa’s inability to score became almost farcical.

The visitors had started like a team determined to get back to the winning ways that had seen them reach as high as second in the table in the opening weeks of the season.

But the hosts turned the tide when Bobby Zamora nodded a long ball down to the edge of the area for Austin to finish.

Ciaran Clark nearly equalised after the restart when Benteke headed down to the defender but he failed to apply the finish only metres from Robert Green’s goal.

To compound Villa’s miseries Austin quickly made it 2-0, making the miss even more costly.

Vargas nearly added a third when substitute Junior Hoilett put him through on goal but the Chilean fired straight at Guzan.

Villa’s on-loan midfielder Tom Cleverley nearly ended their wait for a goal with 10 minutes to go but Green parried his volley and QPR’s Sandro made an important tackle from Clark at the rebound.

BARCELONA, Spain — Real Madrid’s commanding 3-1 win over Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday leaves the two Spanish giants poised to dispute the title that escaped them last season.

Barcelona arrived in the capital unbeaten and aiming for a win that would have increased their lead over Madrid to seven points.

Instead, Madrid’s comeback dealt Barcelona their first league loss of the season and closed the gap to just one point through nine rounds.

The title race could barely be tighter at this early stage. The mood, however, in the rivals’ home cities was entirely different on Sunday morning.

Madrid-based sport daily Marca splashed the headline “They Ate Them Alive!” and fellow Madrid-friendly AS declared “That’s The Way Madrid Wins”, playing on a common anti-Madrid chant at rival stadiums.

Meanwhile, SPORT summed up the sentiment in Barcelona with “A Disappointing Leader” after Barcelona faded fast following Neymar’s fourth-minute opener from a pass by newcomer Luis Suarez.

Lionel Messi could only manage one good scoring chance that Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas did well to turn away, and Barcelona’s defence went from shaky to shambles in the second half.

But Barcelona can take heart from Suarez’s surprisingly strong return after a four-month ban from competitive matches for biting an Italian opponent at the World Cup.

Although still not fit for a full match, in his 69 minutes the Uruguay forward offered the most constant threat Barcelona could muster, setting up Neymar’s opener and almost getting a second assist for Messi that would have made it 2-0.

His sturdier frame —  compared to Messi and Neymar — was clear by the way he held his own against Madrid’s physical defenders, and he showed no signs of rust from his long layoff.

“The result doesn’t sink us,” said Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez. “We believe in what we are doing.”

Coach Luis Enrique, however, faced questions over why his team failed to compete in the second half, and the first-year manager will surely be scrutinised for his decision to take Xavi off with his team down 2-1 and not to start speedy back Jordi Alba.

Madrid lost its two league “Clasicos” last season, but overall it has turned the tide against Barcelona since the departure of former coach Pep Guardiola in 2012.

Under Guardiola, Barcelona dominated Madrid with a record of nine wins, four draws and 2 losses. Since then, Madrid has won five, drawn two and lost three.

Madrid roared back from Neymar’s early goal and shredded Barcelona’s record of eight clean sheets to start the season.

The hosts offered an unbeatable mix of their traditional counterattacking style with a new willingness to dispute the hallmark possession of their fierce rivals.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored for an 11th straight game when he levelled with a penalty in the 35th minute after Gerard Pique had clumsily handled in the area.

Pepe then headed in a corner in the 50th minute before Karim Benzema capped his excellent performance with a goal after a collective defensive gaffe to put an early end to the contest in the 61st minute.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti got it right by replacing the injured Gareth Bale with another midfielder, Francisco “Isco” Alarcon, to equal forces with Barcelona in the middle.

“We saw a Real Madrid that also knew how to keep possession of the ball,” Madrid defender Sergio Ramos said. “They are not the only ones who can pass. It was a day to enjoy. We knew how to handle the phases of the match, when we needed to launch counterattacks and when to keep possession, something which they are used to dominating. And that hurt them a lot.”

The result also benefited the other top teams in the league, leaving five sides within two points.

Sevilla pulled into second place level with Barcelona on points with a 2-1 win over Villarreal on Sunday, while Valencia and Atletico Madrid also won this round to sit two points behind the pacesetters in fourth and fifth.

Yet given the even greater collection of talent Madrid and Barcelona have amassed this season, the league title will likely come down to the two powerhouses who shared nine straight trophies before Atletico’s triumph last season.

SYDNEY — Western Sydney Wanderers goalkeeper Ante Covic thinks Al Hilal had been “arrogant” ahead of last weekend’s Asian Champions League final first leg and had underestimated the A-League side.

Covic was one of the Wanderers’ heroes on Saturday at Parramatta Stadium as the Australian club, playing in their maiden campaign, secured a 1-0 lead to take to Saudi Arabia for next weekend’s second leg.

While twice-Asian champions Al Hilal completely dominated all but 15 minutes of the match, they were unable to breach the home defence and paid the price when substitute striker Tomi Juric slotted home the winner after 64 minutes.

“Everyone’s slowly finding out that we’re no mugs out there on the field and we’re a team that’s got to be respected,” Covic told reporters in Blacktown on Monday.

“It’s a little bit of arrogance on their behalf coming into a game and thinking they deserve something without having to put in the effort.”

Al Hilal’s Romanian coach Laurentiu Reghecampf appeared not to have learned the lesson of Saturday’s reverse, afterwards confidently predicting a second-leg victory for the well-funded club at their King Fahd Stadium.

Reghecampf expected Al Hilal’s passionate following — more than 65,000 fans are expected to pack the stadium on Saturday night — would play their part in overcoming the Australians.

Covic said, however, that the tournament’s new boys had learned plenty about playing the region’s powerhouses away from home during their quarter-final, second leg against reigning champions Guangzhou Evergrande in August.

Wanderers players were awoken by telephone calls in their hotel rooms the night before the game, were involved in a coach crash on the way to the match and pelted with water bottles at the stadium.

They lost 2-1 on the night but went through on away goals and Covic warned Al Hilal fans that the incidents had only served to harden their resolve.

“We’re not going to be intimidated,” Covic added.

“We’re not going to care what they’re going to throw at us. We were in China with 50,000-odd people throwing bottles and yelling at us. We couldn’t even walk off the field without security coming to get us, so that’s not going to faze us.

“We’re going out there with the mindset that something will happen.

“We saw that in China and it was kind of annoying when it happened but I remember when the bus crash happened, it was a very, very [suspicious] bus crash.

“But I remember the boys going ‘oh yeah, this is what you’ve got for us’ but it really fired us up.”

LONDON — Written off last season as a sub-standard misfit with a comical haircut, there are signs that Marouane Fellaini is finally beginning to feel comfortable in a red Manchester United shirt.

The Belgian powerhouse, signed at the start of the ill-fated David Moyes era for £27.5 million, was a convenient scapegoat last season as United endured their worst season in the Premier League, finishing a distant seventh.

There seemed no way back for the rugged midfielder who most United diehards — spoilt by years watching the likes of Paul Scholes, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Roy Keane — thought not fit to sweep the changing room, let alone be put in charge of United’s creative department.

Yet, with Louis van Gaal appearing to understand exactly what a fired-up and confident Fellaini can offer his team, the Afro-haired battering ram is beginning to flourish.

Not that the season started particularly well.

He was a substitute for Van Gaal’s opening Premier League match, a home defeat by Swansea City that would have revived bitter memories of last season when a large proportion of the home jeers were directed his way.

An ankle injury then sidelined him for a month and when he returned he again found himself benched by Belgium.

Something clicked, however, against West Bromwich Albion last week when Fellaini came on for Herrera at halftime and promptly scored a wonderful goal from outside the area — his first goal for United — and added some much-needed bit to his side’s display in a 2-2 draw.

Van Gaal was suitably impressed, so much so that Fellaini started against Chelsea on Sunday and arguably had his best game for United against the best team in the country.

Helping shore up United’s often-creaky backline at one end, he also displayed his trademark strength at the other end to ruffle Chelsea’s back four as United pressed for an equaliser.

That came in stoppage time when he thumped a header that was parried by Thibaut Courtois with the rebound being hammered home by Robin van Persie.

Late goals in “Fergie time” were United’s stock in trade during the glory years under Alex Ferguson, but this one was greeted with as much fervour as any.

After some of the humble surrenders of last season when Old Trafford was not so much a fortress but a house of horrors, a 1-1 draw with Jose Mourinho’s table-toppers represented a big step in the right direction.

While the balance may not be right and there are still plenty of question marks in defence, the old never-say-die spirit at least seems to have returned.

Van Gaal will know that United are a work in progress, but with so much ground to make up he can hardly overlook any of the club’s supposed assets and Fellaini could yet prove to be the signing United thought they had made last season.

Colombian Radamel Falcao and Angel di Maria may be more in the traditional United thoroughbred mould, but Fellaini is the man to do the dirty work needed if the Reds are to reclaim their place in the Champions League.

According to official Premier League statistics Fellaini covered 12.17 kilometres against Chelsea — more than any teammate — and made 70 “high-intensity” runs.

It was more like the player who once ripped up the midfield at Everton and Van Persie certainly benefited from the physical presence supporting him in United’s route-one attacks.

“@fellainiM was fantastic,” the striker said on Twitter. “He did a great job on Fabregas. He is strong on the ball and in the air.”

High praise indeed, although it will take a few more such performances of similar stature from the Everton man to completely win over the Old Trafford sceptics.

SYDNEY — Western Sydney Wanderers coach Tony Popovic was worried when his team was under cosh from Saudi Al Hilal for a hour of the first leg of the Asian Champions League final on Saturday but is confident they can win the trophy after coming away with a 1-0 win.

Substitute striker Tomi Juric scored the goal with the home side’s first shot on target in the 64th minute, keeping alive their hopes of becoming the first Australian side to win Asia’s biggest club prize.

The twice Asian champion visitors had dominated at Parramatta Stadium up to that point, though, and Popovic paid tribute to the way his players weathered the storm.

“We were concerned, of course we were, it’s a credit to the players,” he told reporters.

“They were nervous and we lacked that bit of composure but in adversity in the first half they didn’t throw it away and they didn’t lose their structure and that was very pleasing.

“We started pressing them a little higher and they gave a few balls away under pressure and we seemed to get more as the game went on.”

Wanderers have beaten reigning champions Guangzhou Evergrande and last season’s finalists FC Seoul over two legs in the semifinals and quarter-finals of their maiden continental campaign.

Securing a slender lead in the first leg against a third Asian powerhouse served both sides notice that his team were genuine contenders for the title, Popovic said.

“We have shown we can score away from home and this result has filled us with confidence,” he added.

“We have to recover well and we’re in for a tough battle next week, but they’re going home tonight knowing they’re up against a very tough opponent who can win the title over there.

“The stadium will be full, supporting their team and we expect that. But we have played tough matches and we have a lot of experience from playing against Guangzhou and Seoul and we can draw on that experience.”

Al Hilal’s Romanian coach Laurentiu Reghecampf said he thought the crowd at the King Fahd Stadium for the second leg in Riyadh next week would spur his players on to a third Asian title.

“I’m sure after six days when we play the next game my team is going to win,” he said.

MADRID — Real Madrid’s decision to sell midfielders Xabi Alonso and Angel Di Maria left many scratching their heads and consecutive La Liga defeats as well as a reverse to Atletico Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup set alarm bells ringing at the Bernabeu.

Toni Kroos, who joined from Bayern Munich while Alonso went the other way, was seen as a poor substitute for the experienced Spain midfielder, while James Rodriguez, top scorer at the World Cup finals in Brazil with six goals, seemed to lack Di Maria’s intensity and eye for a killer pass.

A couple of months later and the picture is an altogether different one.

Real have come into the kind of form that propelled them to a record-extending 10th European title last season in coach Carlo Ancelotti’s first term in charge.

Recent performances, including Saturday’s 3-1 win at home to Barcelona in the La Liga “Clasico”, suggest Ancelotti has successfully completed the integration of Kroos and Rodriguez into a side that is fearsome in attack and mean in defence.

Since they were beaten at home by Atletico in La Liga on September 13,
Real have scored 38 goals in nine outings in all competitions and conceded a mere six.

Portuguese World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo is in the form of his life and has netted a jaw-dropping 16 goals in eight La Liga appearances, including the equaliser from the penalty spot on Saturday.

The victory lifted Real to within a point of leaders Barca after nine matches and they are virtually assured of passage to the Champions League knockout round after winning their opening three group games.

“We’re in very good form, I don’t know if I’ve found the perfect formula,” Ancelotti told a post-”Clasico” news conference.

“We’re also in good mental shape,” added the Italian.

“We still have the same idea as last year. We’re trying to improve our play and everything is coming off well.”

Biggest tests 

Barca, by contrast, are licking their wounds after their defensive frailty was again exposed on Saturday and they squandered a number of chances after Neymar had put them ahead in the fourth minute.

Pepe was left unmarked to head in from a corner for Real’s second goal, while their third came after a mix-up between Andres Iniesta and Javier Mascherano.

Ronaldo’s penalty was the first goal Barca had conceded in La Liga this season but, worryingly for new coach Luis Enrique, they have failed in both their biggest tests so far this term, also losing 3-2 at Paris St Germain in the Champions League.

“The game clearly showed that there are opponents who are just as good as us, if not better, like today,” Luis Enrique told a news conference.

“[In Paris] we deserved more and the team was good in general terms,” added the former Spain midfielder, who had stints at both Real and Barca.

“It was a different story against Madrid as they deserved more. But we’ll pick ourselves up and at the end of the season we’ll see if we have deserved something.”