Real Madrid beats Vallecano a day after act of sabotage

BARCELONA, Spain — Real Madrid recorded its much-needed second victory of the season without putting on a performance worthy of the Spanish champions on Monday, winning 2-0 at Rayo Vallecano after goals from Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Benzema scored the 13th-minute opener and Ronaldo added a penalty in the 70th after Jordi Amat had handled the ball in the box to keep Madrid eight points behind Spanish League leader Barcelona after five rounds.

"Rayo has a great team with quality players and they made it very tough for us," said Madrid defender Pepe. "We have to keep fighting. This has just begun and we have to take each game seriously, so we can cut into (Barcelona's) lead little by little."

In a match delayed by a day due to the stadium lights at Vallecas Stadium being cut in an act of sabotage, Madrid showed little of the verve from its memorable victory over Manchester City in the Champions League last week.

Instead, Jose Mourinho's squad returned to its uninspired domestic form against one of the league's more modest teams, needing a flash of individual talent and a defensive error to take the critical three points.

While far from bubbling with praise for his players, Mourinho has obviously seen improvement since the previous round when he said he "didn't have a team" and questioned his players' commitment after losing 1-0 at Sevilla.

"The team was a team (tonight), but we could have played better," said Mourinho. "During long stretches of last season we were always on target and routed our rivals, but right now we are not playing well. We have no confidence."

Also, Sevilla won 2-0 at Deportivo La Coruna thanks to second-half goals by Alvaro Negredo and Ivan Rakitic, keeping the Andalusian side undefeated and four points behind Barcelona.

The Spanish capital derby was held after electricians repaired the various cables that were damaged at Rayo's stadium by unidentified persons on Sunday, in what club president Raul Martin Presa called "football terrorism."

Sergio Ramos returned to the starting team after Mourinho had left him on the bench for Madrid's win over City, apparently singling out the Spain defender for his team's loss in the previous round.

"I don't know if it was a punishment," said Ramos, adding that he thought his absence from the City match was due to "tactical reasons."

Angel Di Maria teed up Madrid's opener when the Argentina international was given time on the left flank to pick out Benzema at the far post and thread a pass between three defenders for his striker to tap into the net. It was Benzema's first goal in the league this season.

Twice in the first four rounds, Madrid had looked set to cruise to an easy win after going ahead early, only to let victory slip away. And Mourinho's team appeared close to repeating the pattern on Monday after slowing up following a strong start.

Rayo almost struck back from a set piece in the 33rd. Striker Andrija Delibasic drew a reflex save from goalkeeper Iker Casillas with his header, and Xabi Alonso was well positioned on the goal line to block Jose Casado's volleyed rebound.

Madrid defender Alvaro Arbeloa came near to gifting Rayo an equalizer in the 52nd when he failed to spot Leonardo Carrilho before passing back to Casillas, but the forward squandered the chance.

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Snedeker beats McIlroy to capture FedEx Cup

ATLANTA — Brandt Snedeker played the biggest round of his career for the biggest payoff in golf.

Needing to win the Tour Championship on Sunday to beat out Rory McIlroy for the FedEx Cup, Snedeker came up with three big birdies on the back nine at East Lake to take all the drama out of a final day that had been loaded with possibilities.

Snedeker hit his final tee shot into the grandstand left the 18th green and made bogey. By then, it didn't matter. So dominant was his performance that he was the only player from the last five groups who managed to break par, closing with a 2-under 68.

Along the way, he answered any questions about why Davis Love III made him a captain's pick for the Ryder Cup next week at Medinah.

Snedeker won by three shots over Justin Rose (71) in the Tour Championship, his second title of the year, and collected $1.44 million. And he won the $10 million bonus for capturing the FedEx Cup, which comes with a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour.

McIlroy and Tiger Woods, both of whom could have won the FedEx Cup with a victory Sunday, faded early and were never a factor.

Snedeker joins Woods (twice), Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk and Bill Haas as winners of the FedEx Cup in its six-year history.

McIlroy had won the last two playoff events and three of his last four tournaments dating to his eight-shot win in the PGA Championship. He still is virtually a lock to be voted PGA Tour player of the year, but he had to settle for second place in the FedEx Cup.

"I knew what I needed to do," McIlroy said. "I needed to win. Brandt knew what he needed to do. And he played fantastic. He really deserved it."

It was an emotional week in so many ways for Snedeker, already a high-strung personality. His father, Larry, flew in to watch final round at East Lake, only the second tournament he has attended since having a liver transplant last year.

Snedeker stopped by a hospital in Atlanta to visit Tucker Anderson, the son of his swing coach who was critically injured in a recent car accident and remains unable to communicate with words.

"I asked him if he thought I was going to beat Rory McIlroy, and he gave me a wink," Snedeker said.

He beat everybody at East Lake in a convincing fashion. After taking a double bogey on the par-3 sixth when he hit his tee shot into the water, Snedeker responded with a 40-foot birdie putt on the eighth, an 18-foot birdie putt on No. 13, and chipping in from short of the 17th green to end all doubt.

"I had complete confidence in what I was doing," Snedeker said.

He finished on 10-under 270 and will move into the top 10 in the world ranking for the first time in his career.

Ryan Moore made the strongest run at Snedeker on the back nine, and with an up-and-down behind the par-5 15th green for back-to-back birdies, he was tied for the lead. Moore never was in the mix for the $10 million bonus, though he could have affected the outcome of the FedEx Cup.

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Darvish beats Iwakuma for 15th win

ARLINGTON, Texas — Yu Darvish can throw fastballs by hitters. He can also freeze them with the slow-breaking curve.

Arms race: Rangers starter Yu Darvish pitches against the Mariners on Friday in Arlington, Texas. Darvish and the Rangers won 9-3. KYODO

Darvish surpassed 200 strikeouts in his rookie season while getting his 15th victory for the AL West-leading Texas Rangers in a 9-3 win against the Seattle Mariners on Friday night.

"Instead of trying to incorporate all the weapons he has, he's coming out of the bullpen recognizing what's working and he's using them," manager Ron Washington said. "One time it's his slider, one time it's his four-seamer. Today, it was his cutter . . . and the slow breaking ball."

Darvish (15-9) struck out nine in seven innings. The 196-cm right-hander often complemented a fastball in the low 150s with a breaking pitch about 48 kph slower.

"It's a tough pitch, something you're not used to," Seattle third baseman Kyle Seager said. "It definitely throws your timing off a little bit. He located really well with it. When he threw them, he threw it with a purpose."

Ian Kinsler and Josh Hamilton homered for the Rangers against Hisashi Iwakuma (6-5), like Darvish, a former Pacific League MVP and in his first year in the major leagues.

Darvish retired 12 of his last 13 batters, striking out seven in that stretch. He allowed only two hits and walked two while throwing 79 of his 110 pitches for strikes.

Darvish made his major league debut against the Mariners five months ago, a game he won after giving up four runs in the first inning. He had a 9.00 ERA in three previous starts against them.

"Just the difference between throwing against them tonight and my previous outings against them, I think it's just throwing strikes," Darvish said through his translator. "Or more precisely not feeling like I have to throw a strike."

It was Darvish's third consecutive start of at least seven innings while allowing three hits or less. The only other Texas pitcher to ever do that was Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, now the team president. He did it in 1990.

With 205 strikeouts, Darvish is the first major league rookie over 200 since Daisuke Matsuzaka struck out 201 batters for Boston in 2007. He is the 16th rookie, sixth in the American League, to record 200 strikeouts.

It was only the eighth time Japanese starters pitched against other in the majors, but Darvish and Iwakuma faced each other six times in Japan. Darvish threw a complete game for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters in a 2-0 win over the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles and Iwakuma, who worked 8? innings in that game, last season.

"It's not really any different between Japan and the major leagues for me," Iwakuma said through a translator. "We're friendly. In Japan, we go to dinner sometimes and I keep in touch with him."

After Carlos Peguero led off the fifth with a strikeout, Darvish's fourth of the game and 200th of the season, the Japanese star quickly added to that total. Trayvon Robinson took a called third strike and Munenori Kawasaki struck out swinging, missing a 151 kph pitch right after taking a 99 kph curve over the plate.

"The hitters, I felt like they were starting to time all my other pitches, or their timing was starting to come together," Darvish said. "I talked it over with (catcher Geovany) Soto during the game to start using that slower curve more."

Reliever Koji Uehara struck out two in a scoreless eighth for Texas.

Kawasaki got the start at shortstop and finished 0-for-2.

Rays 6, Yankees 4

In New York, David Price earned his league-leading 18th win with another superb performance against the Yankees.

Good effort: Mariners starter Hisashi Iwakuma pitches against the Rangers on Friday. AP

New York's Ichiro Suzuki was 0-for-1 in an appearance as a pinch hitter.

Athletics 3, Orioles 2

In Oakland, Yoenis Cespedes hit a two-run homer while playing with a sore right wrist, and the AL wild card-leading Athletics beat Baltimore to prevent the Orioles from moving into sole possession of first place in the AL East.

White Sox 6, Twins 0

In Minneapolis, Chris Sale threw six scoreless innings for his 17th victory after being rained out the night before, helping Chicago keep its one-game lead over Detroit in the AL Central.

Tigers 4, Indians 0

In Cleveland, Justin Verlander pitched seven shutout innings and made sure Detroit stayed in step with first-place Chicago in the AL Central.

Red Sox 8, Blue Jays 5

In Toronto, Mauro Gomez hit a tiebreaking triple in the ninth inning.

Angels 9, Royals 7

In Kansas City, pinch hitter Kendrys Morales had a two-run homer during an eighth-inning rally that sent Los Angeles past the Royals.Rangers hurler Ks nine to reach 205 for the year

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Roddick beats Fognini to postpone retirement

NEW YORK — Winning a second consecutive match since announcing the U.S. Open will be the last tournament of his career, 2003 champion Andy Roddick postponed his retirement a little longer by getting past 59th-ranked Fabio Fognini of Italy 7-5, 7-6 (7-1), 4-6, 6-4 in the third round Sunday.

What comes next could really be memorable. In the fourth round Tuesday, the last American man to win a Grand Slam title will face 2009 U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro, who defeated Leonardo Mayer 6-3, 7-5, 7-6 (11-9) in an all-Argentine match that featured one particularly noteworthy point. In the tiebreaker, Mayer smacked a backhand that somehow ricocheted off the top of a net post and landed in the court — but del Potro was unfazed, got the ball back and wound up winning the point.

"I'm going to have to serve well, kind of try to rush him a little bit," Roddick said about del Potro. "When he gets into a groove and has time, he'll put a hurt on the ball."

Looking ahead himself, del Potro wasn't about to get too sentimental about Roddick's impending departure from tennis.

"I know this is special, this day, for him, but I'm doing my job," said del Potro, whose major trophy is the only one of the past 30 that wasn't won by Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic.

"The crowd loves Andy here," del Potro said, "and they have respect (for) me."

Djokovic, the defending champion, beat No. 31 Julien Benneteau in straight sets and will next meet No. 18 Stanislas Wawrinka. Also advancing: No. 4 David Ferrer, who got past two-time major champion Lleyton Hewitt 7-6 (11-9), 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 and now meets No. 13 Richard Gasquet, who eliminated two-time NCAA champion Steve Johnson 7-6 (7-4), 6-2, 6-3; and No. 8 Janko Tipsarevic.

In women's action, Maria Sharapova got back to the U.S. Open quarterfinals for the first time since winning the 2006 title, taking control of a back-and-forth match after a 75-minute rain delay and beating No. 19 Nadia Petrova 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

Sharapova will play No. 11 Marion Bartoli, who came back to defeat Petra Kvitova 1-6, 6-2, 6-0.

Top-seeded Victoria Azarenka beat 73rd-ranked Anna Tatishvili 6-2, 6-2 to reach the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows for the first time. Azarenka has dropped only 10 games through four matches heading into a showdown against defending champion Sam Stosur, a 6-4, 6-4 winner over 18-year-old Laura Robson of Britain, whose breakthrough run included wins against past major champions Kim Clijsters and Li Na.

Robson beat Clijsters in the second round Wednesday, sending the 29-year-old Belgian into retirement. It was the next day, Roddick's 30th birthday, that he surprisingly let the world know he had decided to walk away as well.

Roddick and Fognini provided their own brand of entertainment, even though Roddick is not at his best because of an aching right shoulder. A couple of months ago, Roddick lowered the tension in his racket strings so he could, he explained while pointing to that shoulder, "get a little sling action in it and help the old Hamburger Helper here."

Asked how that key part of his body feels, Roddick said: "It's not great. But, you know, it's good enough. I've got, max, a week of tennis left, so it's good enough for that."

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Kagawa leads way as Japan beats Azerbaijan

Fine-tuning: Shinji Kagawa (left) vies for the ball during Japan's 2-0 win over Azerbaijan on Wednesday. KYODO

FUKUROI, Shizuoka Pref. — Shinji Kagawa showed exactly why he has Manchester United and a host of other leading European clubs on his trail Wednesday, scoring with a cracking finish to put Japan on the way to a 2-0 win over Azerbaijan in a warmup for next month's World Cup qualifiers.

The Borussia Dortmund star struck three minutes before the interval and also had a hand in the second goal, scored by Shinji Okazaki, before making way for Arsenal starlet Ryo Miyaichi to make his eagerly anticipated senior national team debut midway through the second half at Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa.

Hiroki Sakai and Hideto Takahashi also won their first caps and CSKA Moscow midfielder Keisuke Honda had a solid outing after a nine-month injury-related absence in Japan's last game before three World Cup qualifiers against Oman, Jordan and Australia.

Coach Alberto Zaccheroni on Thursday will name his squad for the home qualifiers against Oman and Jordan at Saitama Stadium 2002 on June 3 and 8, respectively, and the trip to Brisbane to meet Australia on June 12. Japan are also drawn against Zico's Iraq in Group B.

"Everything fell into place for the goal," Kagawa said. "But we had a bundle of chances and we probably should have scored more."

Takayuki Morimoto, recalled as cover for injured Southampton striker Tadanari Lee, started up front with Honda in the hole alongside Kagawa and Okazaki.

The Novara hitman thought he had fired Japan in front in the 17th minute, but the linesman was quick to raise his flag for offside, and Kagawa went close moments later when he drilled just wide of the left-hand post.

Honda, looking sharp in his first national team game since scoring in a 3-0 win over South Korea last August, nearly brought the home fans to their feet with a 30-meter free kick that hit the woodwork and Azerbaijan goalkeeper Kamran Aghayev before going out for a corner.

Morimoto only lasted 37 minutes and left the field with an injury and was replaced by Ryoichi Maeda, much to the delight of Jubilo Iwata fans among a crowd of 30,276.

Japan's dominance finally paid off on 42 minutes with a wonderfully worked goal set up by Honda and Makoto Hasebe.

Hasebe collected Honda's flick to pick out Kagawa with a raking pass, and the 23-year-old bamboozled Maksim Medvedev with a clever piece of skill before burying the ball inside the far post.

Azerbaijan missed a good chance to level two minutes into the second half, Jihan Ozaraka creating space with a surging run and blasting into the side netting before Japan doubled their lead.

Honda got on the end of Kagawa's cross to head the ball into the danger zone for Okazaki to scramble home.

"I played just like I always do," Honda said. "Every game I'm in I expect to win, and we did just that so I'm happy. I think I can play a lot better and so can the rest of the team.

"If we play up to our potential, we're good enough to win all three games."

The crowd reserved one of the biggest cheers of the night for Miyaichi as he came on for Kagawa shortly after the hour mark, but the 19-year-old was unable to respond with a goal.

"I was a little nervous out there, but I'm thrilled to have set foot on the pitch for the national side," Miyaichi said. "I expect the qualifiers to be nothing short of difficult."

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Nats' Strasburg beats Orioles with arm, bat

Express delivery: Cincinnati's Brandon Phillips forces out New York's Chris Stewart during the Reds' 5-2 win over the Yankees on Sunday. AP

WASHINGTON — Stephen Strasburg took a swing and looked in amazement as the baseball carried over the left-field wall.

If Strasburg's first major league homer came as a surprise, his performance on the mound did not. With Strasburg leading the way, the Washington Nationals beat the Baltimore Orioles 9-3 Sunday to avert a three-game sweep.

In addition to his 2-for-2 performance at the plate, Strasburg (4-1) struck out eight in five innings before being lifted by manager Davey Johnson, who said the pitcher mentioned tightness in his biceps.

"I don't care who it was, if I find out they have tightness, they're out," Johnson said. "I talked to him later in the game. He said it relaxed a bit and was a lot better. I'm not as concerned when it's in the biceps."

Strasburg sent an 0-2 pitch from Chen Wei-yin, the former Chunichi Dragon, into the Baltimore bullpen in the fourth inning to put the Nationals ahead 5-3. After dusting off his home run trot and returning to the dugout, he responded to a curtain call by waving to the crowd of 41,918.

"Shocking, that's for sure," Strasburg said of his clout. "I feel like in (batting practice) I have to swing a lot harder to hit it out. I just somehow ran into one."

Known more for his pitching than his hitting, Strasburg excelled at both. The right-hander allowed three runs, one earned, four hits and a walk in his first career appearance against Baltimore. He retired the last 10 batters he faced.

Tigers 4, Pirates 3

In Detroit, Max Scherzer struck out 15 — the most by a Tigers pitcher in 40 years — and the hosts rallied with three runs in the seventh inning to beat Pittsburgh.

Mickey Lolich had 15 Ks for Detroit in 1972 and set the club record of 16 in 1969.

Marlins 5, Indians 3

In Cleveland, Josh Johnson twice worked out of jams to earn his second straight win and help Miami win an interleague series against the Indians.

Red Sox 5, Phillies 1

In Philadelphia, Josh Beckett pitched 7? strong innings and Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit a three-run homer to lead Boston over the hosts.

Braves 2, Rays 0

In St. Petersburg, Florida, Tim Hudson scattered four hits over 7? innings and David Ross homered to lead Atlanta over Tampa Bay.

Brewers 16, Twins 4

In Milwaukee, Jonathan Lucroy homered twice and had a career-high seven RBIs, and Zack Greinke pitched six strong innings to lead the Brewers over Minnesota.

Milwaukee's Norichika Aoki had a pinch-hit single in the seventh and scored.

Padres 3, Angels 2 (13)

In San Diego, pitcher Clayton Richard scored the winning run from first base on an error with two outs in the 13th inning to lift the Padres over Los Angeles.

Rangers 6, Astros 1

In Houston, Colby Lewis allowed four hits in eight-plus innings and drove in two runs, and Texas took a five-run lead in the first inning before coasting to the win over the Astros.

Mets 6, Blue Jays 5

In Toronto, Mike Baxter had three hits and came within a home run of the cycle, and Dillon Gee won for the first time in four starts.

Reds 5, Yankees 2

In New York, Johnny Cueto pitched effectively into the eighth inning, Ryan Ludwick delivered two big hits and Cincinnati closed its extended trip to the Big Apple with a win.

Athletics 6, Giants 2

In San Francisco, Collin Cowgill drove in the go-ahead runs and scored in a home plate collision with pitcher Tim Lincecum as Oakland snapped an 11-game skid in San Francisco.

Mariners 6, Rockies 4

In Denver, Jesus Montero and Justin Smoak hit back-to-back home runs, Blake Beavan tied a season-high with seven strikeouts and Seattle beat Colorado to complete a three-game sweep.

The Mariners' Ichiro Suzuki hit a double, the 500th of his career, in four at-bats and scored once.

Diamondbacks 2, Royals 0

In Kansas City, Wade Miley pitched seven sharp innings and John McDonald drove in the first run with a bunt single to lead Arizona over the hosts.

White Sox 6, Cubs 0

In Chicago, Jake Peavy pitched three-hit ball into the seventh inning and Adam Dunn hit his 14th homer to help the White Sox complete a three-game sweep of their crosstown rivals.

White Sox outfielder Kosuke Fukudome went 1-for-4 and is now batting .175.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Dodgers 6, Cardinals 5

In Los Angeles, pinch hitter Scott Van Slyke connected for his first major league homer, a go-ahead, three-run shot in the seventh inning against his father's former team, and the Dodgers rallied to beat St. Louis.

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Wales beats Ireland in Six Nations

DUBLIN — Leigh Halfpenny kicked a last-minute penalty to snatch a dramatic 23-21 victory for Wales over Ireland in the Six Nations opening round on Sunday.

A thrilling test was settled in contentious circumstances after flanker Stephen Ferris was penalized for a dangerous tackle on Ian Evans, giving Halfpenny his chance.

"It was the hardest kick I've had to take in all my life," Halfpenny said. "As soon as it went over, the emotion came. Having to deal with the miss against France in the World Cup, putting that over makes it all worthwhile."

Halfpenny missed a late penalty attempt near halfway against France at the Rugby World Cup that would have sent Wales through to meet New Zealand in the final.

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Tsonga beats Monfils in Qatar final

DOHA — Jo-Wilfried Tsonga shrugged off a slow start and beat Gael Monfils 7-5, 6-3 in an all-French final at the Qatar Open on Saturday, giving himself a confidence boost for the Australian Open.

The sixth-ranked Tsonga, who reached the final when Roger Federer withdrew with an injury, fell behind 3-1 before finding a rhythm, coming to the net more often and reeling off the final four games to win the first set.

The momentum carried over into the second set, when Tsonga kept Monfils off balance with his powerful forehand and occasional drop volleys. Tsonga broke Monfils to go up 4-2 and won the match when Monfils hit a backhand into the net after a long rally.

"At the beginning, it was bit difficult. He broke me very early and it was tough," Tsonga said. "But in my head, everything was right, OK, I'm one break down. I will continue to play my game and make him run a lot. I think it was good solution. After that, he was bit tired of that and I was better than him."

His eighth career title also came in his third successive final. The previous two were at the end of last year, in the Paris Masters and ATP Finals, when he lost to Federer each time. The Swiss star pulled out of their Friday semifinal because of back spasms, hoping to be ready for the Australian Open starting on Jan. 16.

Tsonga said he was counting on his Doha success to carry over to Melbourne, where he was a finalist in 2008. He refused to predict how deep he can go in the tournament, partly because he didn't face Federer, Rafael Nadal or No. 1-ranked Novak Djokovic in this tournament.

"You know, my target is to go as far as possible, of course. If I can win it, I will," he said. "I think of it, and I really want it, like I think most of the other players. So I do everything for that, and this is why it's exciting, because I don't know if I will do it one day or not. But anyway, I work for that, and my ambition is to win a Grand Slam."

BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA — Andy Murray is one tournament into a partnership with new coach Ivan Lendl and already it has netted a title.

The No. 4-ranked Murray warmed up for the Australian Open with a commanding 6-1, 6-3 win over third-seeded Alexandr Dolgopolov in the Brisbane International final.

The victory provided the ideal start to Murray's partnership with Lendl, and the eight-time Grand Slam winner was courtside for only the second time when the 24-year-old Scot lifted the Roy Emerson Trophy.

"I'd like to thank my team . . . Mr. Lendl, he's up there somewhere, hiding," Murray said of his new coach. "It's my first week with this new team and it was good. I really enjoyed it. Hopefully it'll bring more success in the future."

The 24-year-old Murray's next task is the Australian Open, where he has lost the past two finals, to be 0-3 in major finals overall — a statistic he's desperate to improve.

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Celtic beats Rangers to move top

Celtic supplanted Rangers at the top of the Scottish Premier League on Wednesday, defeating its Glasgow rival 1-0 to complete a dramatic turnaround in fortunes in the battle for the title.

Wales midfielder Joe Ledley grabbed the winner at Celtic Park, meeting a corner with an emphatic header at the far post in the 52nd minute to secure Celtic's ninth straight league victory.

Less than two months ago, Neil Lennon's side was in third place in the standings and 15 points adrift of Rangers, who at that stage were unbeaten and looking unstoppable in their bid to retain the title.

However, Celtic now has not only a two-point lead but also precious momentum as well following a deserved victory in the eighth match between the fierce rivals in 2011.

"It's a great feeling," Ledley said. "I thought we played well from the off and dominated the game.

"We didn't have the best start to the season but we have moved on from there. We have played some great football at times, as we did today."

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Kashiwa beats Auckland City to open Club World Cup

TOYOTA, Aichi Pref. — J. League kings Kashiwa Reysol marked their international debut with a controlling win on Thursday, beating Auckland City 2-0 in the opening match of the Club World Cup.

Best foot forward: Kashiwa's Leandro Domingues competes against Auckland City's Manel Exposito Presseguer during their Club World Cup match on Thursday. Reysol won 2-0. KYODO PHOTO

First-half goals from Junya Tanaka and Masato Kudo sent Nelsinho's side into the last eight on Sunday, when Reysol will face Monterrey of Mexico for a shot against South American champion Santos in the semifinals.

Kashiwa picked up right where it left off five days ago, when Reysol triumphed in the domestic campaign with victory at Urawa Reds on the final day of the season.

The visitors from New Zealand, who won twice at the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi two years ago, looked nervous and never threatened in the first half, failing to produce a single shot on target.

Reysol's dominance translated into a goal in the 37th minute when left-back Wataru Hashimoto set up a brilliant strike by Tanaka, who wheeled into the box past Alex Feneridis before blasting into the net at the near post.

Three minutes later, Kashiwa found the net for a second time with Hashimoto again supplying the final pass, this time for Kudo.

From a Leandro Domingues cross, Hiroki Sakai rose above the Auckland defense to glance a header off the right post. Hashimoto was in the right place at the right time to collect the rebound and pick out Kudo, who scored with ease past keeper Jacob Spoonley.

Kudo's goal all but sewed up Kashiwa's progress to Sunday's quarterfinal against the North, Central American and Caribbean champions even before halftime.

Toyota Stadium grew murky as heavy fog began to settle over the ground after the break, but there was nothing unclear about the poise and purpose of the newly crowned J. League champions on this night.

Kudo came within inches of a brace three minutes into the second half, striking the top of the bar with a header.

Auckland City finally settled into the game, showing signs of life on the attack.

They created a great opportunity in the 74th minute as Manel Exposito had a free shot from a Dave Mulligan free kick, but the Spaniard fired well over the bar.

Takanori Sugeno was eventually called into action five minutes later, when the Kashiwa custodian made splendid back-to-back saves to keep Auckland off the scoreboard.

Sugeno first batted away a curling Mulligan free kick that appeared destined for the top corner and from the following corner kick, denied a close-range header by captain Ivan Vicelich.

But that was as close as the Oceania champions would get as Reysol reasserted command to seal the victory.

NYON SWITZERLAND — Wayne Rooney was cleared to play in England's final group match at next year's European Championship after UEFA decided Thursday to reduce his three-match ban to two.

The UEFA appeals panel deferred the final match of the England striker's three-match suspension on condition of his good behavior for four years.

Rooney remains banned for England's games against France and Sweden, but he will be able to face Euro 2012 co-host Ukraine in Donetsk on June 19.

Rooney did not speak with reporters after leaving UEFA headquarters with England coach Fabio Capello, who helped present his case in a 90-minute session before an appeals panel.

Capello smiled and nodded in agreement when asked if his star player's hearing had gone well.

"It's a very positive result," Club England managing director Adrian Bevington said. "It would have been a huge challenge for Fabio and the team (to be without Rooney)."

UEFA said that Rooney's third suspended match will be activated only if he is sent off for violent conduct while playing for England in a European Championship match.

"Rooney will also spend a day supporting a UEFA project as part of the sentence," UEFA said in a statement.

Rooney, who wore a Manchester United blazer and tie, addressed the appeals body, which was chaired by Swiss official Michel Wuilleret.

"He has been very professional and mature in the way he answered everything that has been said to him by the UEFA panel," Bevington said.

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Fujita beats Taniguchi in playoff

Hiroyuki Fujita successfully defended his Nippon Series JT Cup title Sunday, beating fellow veteran Toru Taniguchi with a par on the second playoff hole.

Fujita managed a two-putt par on the second extra hole — Tokyo Yomiuri Country Club's signature 227-yard, par-3 18th — after Taniguchi missed the green with his tee shot and ended up missing a par-saving putt in the season-ending event.

The two players finished regulation tied at 10-under-par 200 after Fujita shot a 6-under 64, the day's best score, and Taniguchi had a 65.

Ryo Ishikawa finished alone in third after a 68 left him three shots out of the playoff. The 20-year-old star ended the season without a win for the first time since he turned pro in 2008.

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Argentina beats Spain in doubles to stay alive in Davis Cup

SEVILLE, Spain — Argentina beat Spain in doubles to cut its Davis Cup final deficit to 2-1 on Saturday, although the South Americans will have to beat Rafael Nadal on his favorite clay surface to keep their chances of a maiden title alive.

David Nalbandian and Eduardo Schwank, partnering for the first time, eased to a 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 victory over Spanish pair Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez.

The South Americans broke five times and repelled each of the three they faced against their Spanish counterparts to extend the tie into Sunday. The visitors need to sweep reverse singles to become the first team in 72 years to rally from a 2-0 deficit.

"We played a great game. We're in very good shape, and the series is still alive," Nalbandian said. "Our hope is intact."

But such an achievement appears difficult with Nadal, unbeaten on clay in the competition, opening for the four-time champions against Juan Martin del Potro. The 11th-ranked Del Potro has to bounce back from his exhausting near five-hour singles loss Friday and hand 10-time major champion Nadal his first loss on clay in 16 Davis Cup matches.

Nadal and Ferrer are a combined 27-0 on clay for Spain, which hasn't lost a tie on clay since 1999.

"I'm not pessimistic. Tomorrow we have Nadal and Ferrer to win one point," said Spain captain Albert Costa, who expected Nalbandian to replace Juan Monaco should the final stretch to a fifth match. Nalbandian improved his cup record to 34-10.

Lopez and Verdasco again failed to follow up an impressive sweep of the opening singles by Nadal and David Ferrer. They also lost in the semifinals against France in which they won only three games.

The Argentine section of fans was boisterous throughout, with Nalbandian volleying home the winner to break Lopez's serve in the fifth game as the visitors served out the set.

Nalbandian, playing for the first time since October, and Schwank were barely bothered after that as they got out to 4-0 advantage in the second set to take command of the match.

In the third set, just when the Spanish pair managed to get the crowd of over 20,000 fired up with a break chance in the sixth game, Argentina saved two break opportunities before Schwank ended the suspense with a volley at the net to hold serve.

Schwank served out the victory in just under two hours when Verdasco volleyed into the net.

"They made the effort to get here as best as possible so we can't complain," said Costa, who defended the decision not to use reserve Marcel Granollers after his pair's doubles record fell to 7-6. "The last two matches weren't their best ones but you have to think Davis Cup is a team and we are here because of them."

MILAN, ITALY — Francesca Schiavone defeated both Venus and Serena Williams in singles on Saturday before they rallied to win the doubles in an exhibition in Milan.

Schiavone topped Venus 7-5, 7-3, then countered a strong comeback from Serena to beat the younger sibling 7-3, 8-10, 8-6.

Flavia Pennetta also beat Venus, whose strap broke on her dress before a sellout crowd of 11,000. Venus dashed off the court and returned in her third outfit of the event. She also brought popcorn to share with Pennetta, who won 7-6, 7-2.

Serena defeated Pennetta 6-8, 7-3, 7-3 before the Williams sisters won the doubles 3-7, 8-6, 8-6.

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United beats Chelsea to all but claim title

MANCHESTER, England — Javier Hernandez netted the 20th goal of a sparkling debut season at Manchester United in a 2-1 victory over Chelsea on Sunday that put his team a point away from a record 19th English title.

The Mexico striker took just 36 seconds to score after Chelsea defender David Luiz failed to intercept Park Ji Sung's through ball. United captain Nemanja Vidic headed in another in the 23rd minute after connecting with Ryan Giggs' cross.

Frank Lampard pulled one back for Chelsea in the second half after Branislav Ivanovic flicked on Ramires' cross.

"We could've scored six in the second half, but we expected a tough game and we got a tough game," United manager Alex Ferguson said. "We were brilliant — we got a great start but (Petr) Cech made some fantastic saves. When we gave the ball away for their goal, we were a bit nervy but the fans helped us."

United is now six points clear of Chelsea with two games to go and will regain the Premier League trophy from the London club with at least a draw at Blackburn on Saturday.

Ferguson constantly reminds his players — and has taunted rivals in the past — about how easy it is to fail with victory in sight by recalling the 1956 British Grand National.

Devon Loch was 40 meters from the winning post in the famous steeplechase when he collapsed to become one of the most infamous losers in British sporting history.

"Don't even mention Devon Loch — my dad backed that," Ferguson said.

But the 69-year-old Scot is already celebrating a 12th Premier League triumph and United surpassing the English record of 18 league titles it has held with Liverpool since 2009.

"It's fantastic to be the most successful team in the country," he said. "The minute we won that first title in 1992 the door opened, and we've been involved in the first two all throughout that period — it's a fantastic achievement.

"For the last 17 or 18 years it's been Arsenal and Chelsea as our nearest challengers, and the last few years it's been Chelsea. Arsenal made a great attempt this year but them losing today has finalized it. We deserve the title and hopefully we'll get that point now."

United stamped its authority on Chelsea from kickoff, having already knocked Carlo Ancelotti's side out of the Champions League in the quarterfinals.

Giggs sent Park sprinting up the pitch and when Luiz missed his through ball, Hernandez coolly slotted past Cech.

Giggs was also heavily involved in United's second. The Welsh midfielder played a short corner and then retook possession, nipped neatly past Salomon Kalou and provided the perfect cross for Vidic to direct a downward header past Cech.

Lampard kept the game alive by steering in Ivanovic's header in the 68th, but Chelsea already looked beaten.

"In the first minute we lost the game, we started so badly," Ancelotti said. "It was very difficult after that to come back and try to win. The second half was better but United played better and deserved to win.

"We have to accept the defeat, today United were better and in general this season they were better than us."

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Madrid beats Barca for King's Cup

Valencia, Spain — Cristiano Ronaldo headed home the winner in extra time as Real Madrid ended an 18-year King's Cup trophy drought with a 1-0 victory over biggest rival Barcelona on Wednesday.

The main man: Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo poses with the King's Cup after Wednesday's 1-0 victory after extra time over Barcelona in Valencia, Spain AP PHOTO

Ronaldo guided Angel Di Maria's 103rd-minute cross back across goal and past the outstretched hand of goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto into the top corner as Madrid won silverware for the first time since a 2008 Spanish League title.

"It was a very tough game, Barcelona played very well, but, as you know, whoever scores, wins," Ronaldo said. "We are very happy, Madrid had not won this cup for many years."

Madrid dominated the first half and then relied on goalkeeper Iker Casillas' second-half stops as Barcelona took control after the restart in an electric atmosphere at Mestalla Stadium.

Madrid's 18th domestic cup also ends a six-game winless run against Barcelona, which lost for only the 10th time in its 35th final appearance.

Madrid's Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho bowed before King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia as he received his mini-trophy, while Casillas hugged the pair before using the king as support to climb up on a support and hoist the trophy high.

"A great game of football," Mourinho said after bringing silverware to the club in his first season.

Barcelona failed with a trophy on the line for the first time under coach Pep Guardiola.

"It's always better to win than lose but we have to recover because that's life. Life has its knocks too," Guardiola said. "Will we pick ourselves up from this? Of course."

Barcelona, which closed in on the league title with a 1-1 draw against Madrid on Saturday, gets its first chance next Wednesday when the pair meet for the first of a two-legged Champions League semifinal.

The winning goal came from an incisive attack by Madrid. Fullback Marcelo played Di Maria into the left side of the area and the Argentina forward beat Daniel Alves to the perfectly weighted ball to find Ronaldo at the far post for the winner at the site of both clubs' last cup win - Madrid over Zaragoza and Barcelona over Athletic Bilbao in 2009.

Chelsea overtook Arsenal as Manchester United's closest rival for the Premier League title on Wednesday after the Gunners surrendered a two-goal lead to draw 3-3 at Tottenham.

Arsenal led 3-1 but Tom Huddlestone got a goal back before halftime and Rafael van der Vaart equalized with a 70th-minute penalty to push its fiercest rival down to third place.

Defending champion Chelsea moved above Arsenal on goal difference after Florent Malouda scored either side of a goal by Salomon Kalou for a straightforward 3-1 win over Birmingham.

United is six points ahead of its rivals with five games remaining, but must still play both sides.

"Chelsea's now back in the race," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. "It's down to us to keep our faith and keep battling. We'll not always draw when we score three goals."

But Arsenal has now drawn four of its last five Premier League matches, with three straight games at home exactly accounting for the margin now between it and United.

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