Sanfrecce target Club World Cup final

TOYOTA, Aichi Pref. — Sanfrecce Hiroshima hope to go where no J. League or Asian team has gone before — the Club World Cup final.

Not even their big-budgeted predecessors Urawa Reds (2007), Gamba Osaka (2008) and Kashiwa Reysol (2011) were able to reach the final, but Hiroshima believes it has every chance of making it to Nissan Stadium on Dec. 16 once it beats Egypt's Al-Ahly in Sunday's quarterfinal.

"Urawa, Gamba and Kashiwa all made it to the semifinals," Sanfrecce captain Hisato Sato said. "If we beat Al-Ahly, we give ourselves an opportunity to top what they achieved."

Sato and J. League champions Sanfrecce are coming off a 1-0 win over Auckland City in the opening match on Thursday.

Hiroshima dominated for the most part against the amateurs from New Zealand, but J. League Player of the Year Sato is expecting a completely different proposition from African champions Al-Ahly at Toyota Stadium.

"We were able to win our first match on the world stage, but Al-Ahly and Corinthians — who we could later face — will be on an entirely different level from Auckland City," Sato said.

"We made some minor errors in the Auckland game which we'll have to avoid if we want to stand a chance against Al-Ahly. Looking back on the last game, I thought Auckland paid us too much respect.

"I can't see that happening with Al-Ahly, who are African champions. I expect us to see less time on the ball in our next game."

Victory over Al-Ahly would pit Hajime Moriyasu's men versus Corinthians, the inaugural Club World Cup champions, in the last four. A win against the Sao Paulo side would take Hiroshima to the final, where it will likely meet European champions Chelsea.

Chelsea will play either Asian champions Ulsan Hyundai or Monterrey of Mexico — who also clash Sunday — in Thursday's semifinal at Yokohama.

Al-Ahly will make its fourth Club World Cup appearance after winning the African Champions League on the heels of a cancelled Egyptian season due to the Port Said Stadium disaster in which 72 fans were killed.

Moriyasu admitted Al-Ahly remains something of a mystery to him, but was confident his troops would come through, just as they did on Thursday.

"We don't have a great deal of information on our next opponents because there's only so much film available on them," first-year coach Moriyasu said.

"It will come down to how well we can execute, knowing little about the other team. But the boys held their nerves and played well enough to win it, which was the most important thing. I expect us to build on the performance next time out."

View the original article here

Inui on target again for Eintracht

FRANKFURT — Japan midfielder Takashi Inui scored in his third straight game for newly promoted Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt in Tuesday's 3-3 draw at home against two-time league champion Borussia Dortmund. Frankfurt, with 13 points from five games, is second in the league, two points back of Bayern Munich.

Trailing 2-0 in the 49th minute, Inui set up Stefan Aigner to score when the visitors turned over the ball in the center circle. Two minutes later, Aigner returned the favor with a cross that Inui headed in for the equalizer.

"That was such a great ball," said Inui, who added that it was the first time he had scored from a header in his life.

"The manager laid down the law (at halftime). As a result, we got over it (being down 2-0) and didn't give up."

Dortmund, whose 31-match unbeaten run in the league came to an end on the weekend, retaliated in moments through Mario Gotze. In the 73rd minute, however, Inui played a short corner and Bastian Okzipka crossed to Anderson, whose finish preserved the new boys' unbeaten Bundesliga record.

"I really wanted to score the winning goal, but it's huge that the team remained undefeated," Inui said.

View the original article here

Cole on target as Chelsea sinks Stoke

LONDON — Ashley Cole produced a late Chelsea winner against Stoke by scoring his first goal in two years on Saturday, and Southampton collected its first points of the season with a victory at Aston Villa.

With Chelsea facing a second consecutive scoreless stalemate, Cole lifted the ball over Asmir Begovic in the 85th minute to secure a 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea has a three-point lead at the top of the league over Everton, which won 3-0 at Swansea, and West Bromwich Albion, which beat Reading 1-0.

Southampton climbed off the bottom by coming from behind to beat Aston Villa 4-1, while Fulham won 2-1 at Wigan, and West Ham drew 1-1 with Sunderland.

The glamorous fixtures of the weekend were still to come on Sunday when Manchester United was set to visit Liverpool and champion Manchester City hosts Arsenal.

But it will be Chelsea ending the weekend at the summit after being rescued by its left back.

Cole hadn't scored since May 2010 until he connected with Juan Mata's back-heel and beat Begovic from close range after 85 minutes of dogged Stoke defending.

"You have a game plan and you need to be patient and you need to find solutions to break them down . . . it is very difficult," Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo said. "(Cole is) an unexpected goal scorer but we seem to have our full backs in very advanced positions these days."

Southampton had endured four straight losses since gaining promotion back to the Premier League and the south-coast side conceded its 15th goal of the season when Darren Bent put Villa ahead in the 36th.

But Southampton turned on the style in the second half after Rickie Lambert lashed in a leveler in the 58th.

Southampton went in front five minutes later when defender Nathaniel Clyne slotted the ball past goalkeeper Brad Guzan from close range, and Jason Puncheon extended the lead with a strike from the edge of the six-yard box that deflected off Ciaran Clark before landing in the net.

After setting up Puncheon's goal, Lambert was on the scoresheet again with a 90th-minute penalty after Guzan brought down Emmanuel Mayuka.

"We've been desperate to get some points on the board," Lambert said. "Today is everything we believed we could do and it came to fruition. At half time (manager) Nigel Adkins told us certain things were unacceptable . . . but we still believed we could win the game and we managed to do it."

That was rarely in doubt for Everton at Swansea, with Victor Anichebe and Kevin Mirallas scoring before the break and Marouane Fellaini heading in a late third after the hosts had Nathan Dyer sent off early in the second half.

View the original article here

Sports Massage for Athletes: Target - Women version 2.0perfect for Baseball, Basketball, Football, Soccer & Track Enthusiasts

SPORTS MASSAGE FOR ATHLETES:TARGET V2 - DVD Movie

Price: $19.95

Click here to buy from Amazon

Sports Massage for Athletes: Target - Men version 2.0perfect for Baseball, Basketball, Football, Soccer & Track Enthusiasts

What is Therapeutic Sports Massage?

Therapeutic sports massage is a type of massage technique that focuses on treating soft tissue aches, pains and injuries that are associated with recreational activities.

You don't have to be in the Olympics to benefit from sports massage. Whether you are an avid skier, or just working off those holiday pounds, a Sports Massage is the perfect way to relax those tight, overworked muscles with a mix of techniques with several sports stretches for the problem areas. These areas may include the Hamstrings, Quads, Calf muscles, & Glutes.

Even after a long walk your muscles can become knotted - despite stretching. Knots can also develop in areas of old injuries and through overuse.

These knots can throw off your body balance and posture as you baby the area that is tense and sore. This may lead to poor performance or even injury. Massage can work out those knots, relieving the stress they can place on muscles, tendons, ligaments and joints.

Sports massage is also good for people with injuries, chronic pain or restricted range of motion. Sports massage will reduce muscle stiffness and improve relaxation. For most athletes, enjoying less muscle pain and stiffness and improving sense of relaxation and well-being is reason enough to enjoy regular massage.

This video will show you the best stretches and massage strokes to relax tired & overworked muscles, increase flexibility & help athletes prepare their bodies for optimal performance, recover after a big event, or function well during training.

Price: $19.95

Click here to buy from Amazon

Lakers target Paul, get Game 2 victory

LOS ANGELES — Kobe Bryant barely made a ripple on offense for the Los Angeles Lakers. He was too busy ensuring Chris Paul didn't make another huge splash that could have put the Lakers in a cavernous playoff hole.

Heading for the lane: Kobe Bryant of the Lakers drives past New Orleans' Trevor Ariza in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series on Wednesday night. The Lakers won 87-78 to tie the series 1-1. AP PHOTO

Andrew Bynum had 17 points and 11 rebounds, Lamar Odom scored 16 points, and the Lakers survived quiet offensive games from their two biggest stars to even their first-round playoff series with an 87-78 victory over the New Orleans Hornets in Game 2 on Wednesday night.

Ron Artest added 15 points as the two-time defending champions rebounded from a stunning nine-point loss in the series opener with Bryant leading an improved defensive effort against Paul, who still had 20 points and nine assists after shredding Los Angeles' defense in Game 1.

"We stayed in front of him for the most part," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "He made some big plays for them . . . but I think we did a better job being attentive to him, and that's as good as it gets right now."

Los Angeles spent the past two days scheming ways to prevent a repeat of Paul's 33-point, 14-assist dissection of their defense in Game 1. Bryant's snarling intensity was obvious when he took his turn guarding Paul, jumping on him with full-court pressure and even battling him for inconsequential inbound passes midway through the game.

"We had a good rhythm today," Bryant said. "We found something we can hang our hats on in terms of the intensity and the aggression that we played with. Going up to New Orleans, I think that environment will bring it out."

Game 3 is Friday night in New Orleans.

Trevor Ariza scored 22 points for the Hornets, who committed 16 turnovers after making just three in Game 1.

Spurs 93, Grizzlies 87

In San Antonio, Manu Ginobili scored 17 points in the All-Star's return after missing Game 1 with an elbow sprain, and the Spurs beat Memphis to even the first-round series. 1-1.

Ginobili wore a thick sleeve to protect his right elbow but played as physically reckless as usual.

Sam Young had 17 points for the Grizzlies, who opened the series with their first franchise playoff win.

Tim Duncan had 16 points and 10 rebounds for San Antonio. George Hill and Richard Jefferson added 16 apiece.

Zach Randolph scored 11 points on 5-of-14 shooting and Marc Gasol had 12 points, and 17 rebounds for Memphis.

Thunder 106, Nuggets 89

In Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant scored 23 points, Russell Westbrook added 21 and the Thunder built a big first-half lead on the way to a victory over Denver in Game 2 on Wednesday.

The first-round playoff series shifts to Denver on Saturday night with Oklahoma City leading 2-0.

Ty Lawson scored 20 points to lead the Nuggets.

View the original article here