Soccer-Motta sent off as leaders PSG draw rare blank

PARIS, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Ten-man Paris St Germain failed to score in a Ligue 1 game for the first time since August as the leaders were held to a 0-0 home draw by lowly Ajaccio on Friday.
PSG wasted numerous goal chances after having Thiago Motta sent off on the stroke of halftime for a dangerous tackle on Frederic Sammaritano.
Carlo Ancelotti's men were also hindered when captain Thiago Silva had to go off with a leg injury.
Brazil forward Lucas Moura made a quiet league debut for PSG who have 39 points from 20 games, one point more than Olympique Lyon and Olympique Marseille.
Lyon visit struggling Troyes on Saturday while Marseille travel to third from bottom Sochaux on Sunday.
Ajaccio, who are sixth from bottom, frustrated PSG in the first half and the home team found it tough to create clear-cut openings.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the league's top scorer with 18 goals, wasted their best opportunity when he volleyed a fine pass from Motta over the crossbar in the 32nd minute.
Ajaccio goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa then saved a powerful header from Brazil defender Alex in the 61st minute before denying Ibrahimovic in a one-to-one.
Sweden striker Ibrahimovic could have won it for PSG in stoppage time but his shot from just outside the box went narrowly wide.
Earlier, Yohan Mollo scored one and set up another goal in his first league game for St Etienne since joining from bottom club Nancy as they were held to a 2-2 draw by visiting Toulouse.
St Etienne, who had not scored for five league games, went in front in the 26th minute when captain Loic Perrin headed in a Mollo free kick.
Etienne Didot levelled a minute later before full back Serge Aurier struck from just outside the box to put Toulouse, who are 11th, ahead two minutes before halftime.
Tenth-placed St Etienne were rewarded for their second-half efforts when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's effort was parried into Mollo's path and he tapped the ball into an empty net.

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Soccer-Rayo beat Bilbao to move into European places in La Liga

MADRID, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Tiny Rayo Vallecano won 2-1 at Athletic Bilbao on Friday to move into sixth spot in La Liga, level on points with fourth-placed Malaga in the Champions League qualification slots.
Lass Bangoura and Piti, with a penalty, put Rayo two goals up in the second half and they held on despite Bilbao pulling one back through Mikel San Jose near the end and a late red card for visiting defender Alejandro Galvez.
Rayo, who are in administration and operate on La Liga's smallest budget, climbed to 31 points, the same as Real Betis in fifth and Malaga, after a fourth straight win.
Last season's Europa League and King's Cup finalists Bilbao were 14th with 21 points after a third consecutive defeat.
Rayo struck first just after halftime when Guinean forward Lass burst through a huge gap in Bilbao's shambolic defence and fired past Gorka Iraizoz in a one-on-one.
Bilbao coach Marcelo Bielsa threw on want-away striker Fernando Llorente who headed against the bar with almost his first touch, but the hosts were again hit on the break.
Alejandro Dominguez was brought down just outside the area, though the linesman signalled it had been inside, and a penalty was awarded.
Rayo captain Piti scored from the spot in the 65th, but they were slowly pushed back and defender San Jose volleyed one back for Bilbao, as the visitors struggled to clear a freekick in the 77th.
Llorente headed wide from point-blank range in a frantic finale, when Rayo were reduced to 10 men after Galvez picked up a second yellow card.

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FACTBOX-Soccer-African Nations Cup finalists Tunisia

Jan 12 (Reuters) - Factbox on African Nations Cup finalists Tunisia ahead of this year's tournament in South Africa from Jan. 19 to Feb. 10:
Previous appearances in African Nations Cup finals: 15
Best performances: Winners in 2004; Runners-up in 1965 and 1996
FIFA world ranking Dec 2012: 45
Coach:
Sami Trabelsi was a long-standing fullback for the Tunisia side, playing at three Nations Cup finals between 1996 and 2000 and at the 1998 World Cup in France. At the 1996 Nations Cup he competed in every game but then missed out on the final, which Tunisia lost to hosts South Africa. Trabelsi coached Tunisia's home-based players to victory at the 2011 African Nations Championship in Sudan and was then handed the national team job in March 2011.
Key players:
Issam Jemaa (Kuwait SC). Age: 28. Pos: Forward
Tunisia's all-time top scorer with 32 goals who is heading to his fifth successive Nations Cup tournament. Jemaa won the Tunisian championship with Esperance in 2003 and 2004 before moving to France, where he played at Racing Lens, Caen, AJ Auxerre and Stade Brest. Last year he moved to Kuwait.
Aymen Abdennour (Toulouse). Age: 23. Pos: Defender
Former captain of the under-21 side, who was a firm favourite at Etoile Sahel before going on loan to Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga. Toulouse signed him in 2011 and such was their delight at his adaptation to Ligue 1 that they extended his contract to a four-year deal six months after his arrival. He started as a left wing, later played at left back but is now used at a centre back.
Youssef Msakni (Al Lekhwiya). Age: 22. Pos: Midfielder
Has just signed a lucrative deal with Qatari club Al Lekhwiya after helping Esperance to reach two successive African Champions League finals. Tricky winger with an ability to glide past defenders but needs some more polish before fulfilling frequent predictions that he might become a real sensation.
Prospects
Tunisia are a consistent force at the finals but have won only once, when they hosted the finals in 2004. They will have fond memories of their last tournament in South Africa when they sent an under-23 side to the 1996 finals, which they used to prepare the team for the Atlanta Olympics, and were as stunned as the rest when the team finished runners-up.

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D'Antoni says Lakers need better starts, tighter defense

(Reuters) - Faster starts and a much improved defense are sorely needed by the Los Angeles Lakers if the 16-time NBA champions are to resurrect a bitterly disappointing campaign, according to their head coach Mike D'Antoni.
Lakers fans had lofty expectations for 2012-13 after Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol were joined by fellow All-Stars Dwight Howard and Steve Nash during the off-season but the once mighty franchise has failed to gel, slipping to a 15-17 record.
An ageing line-up has not been helped by a spate of injuries and three different head coaches, though the return of veteran point guard Nash from a leg fracture for the last six games certainly gave the team a much needed lift.
"We just have to get better starts," D'Antoni told reporters after Lakers team practice at their El Segundo training facility on Saturday. "Whatever we're doing isn't working right now.
"And defensively, we need to work harder. We lose our energy on defense sometimes because the offense sputters."
The Lakers lost a tense battle with their city rival Clippers 107-102 on Friday after clawing back from a 19-point deficit early in the fourth quarter at the Staples Center.
FALLING SHORT
In their previous game they also fell short, going down 103-99 on their home court against the struggling Philadelphia 76ers on New Year's Day after trailing by 11 points in the first quarter.
"We competed," D'Antoni said of his team's spirited revival against the Clippers when Bryant finished with a game-high 38 points. "We came back and we had a shot at the end to win.
"We're always shooting under pressure, down eight or 10, and the ball has to go in. Then you're down 15 or 17, and it's ‘Oh man'. We're struggling with that a little bit.
"So there are spots where we're really good and there are spots where we seem to dissolve a little bit as a team. We have to find guys that can make shots and we have to get back to that."
The Lakers have very little time to get back as they host the Denver Nuggets on Sunday and their three-time defensive player of the year Howard has billed himself a "game-day decision".
Center Howard put up 21 points and 15 rebounds for the Lakers against the Clippers on Friday but hurt his shoulder in a tangle with Caron Butler and woke up on Saturday in some pain.
Howard skipped team practice on Saturday and received treatment from the Lakers' training staff but D'Antoni was not too worried, saying the center's chances of playing on Sunday were "good."
Bench player Jordan Hill, who sprained his right ankle against the Clippers, was listed as "probable" for Sunday's game against the Nuggets.
The Lakers, who have lost three of their last four games, have gone 10-12 since D'Antoni took over from interim coach Bernie Bickerstaff.

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UPDATE 1-NBA-Spurs smack Sixers to ride high in the West

* Spurs win 10th straight game at home
* Stay in contention for top spot in the West (adds quotes, detail)
Jan 5 (Reuters) - Tony Parker and the San Antonio Spurs maintained course with a swagger in their bid for supremacy in the hotly contested Western Conference with a 109-86 rout of the road-weary Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
Four-times All-Star guard Parker recorded 20 points and five assists while Manu Ginobili added 19 points and Tim Duncan 16 as the Spurs improved their record to 27-9 with a commanding display on home court.
Coming off their first loss in eight games, a 100-83 thrashing by the Knicks in New York on Thursday, San Antonio kept up the pressure on the pacesetting Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers for top spot in the West.
"Our guys played well tonight," Duncan told reporters after his 16-point tally lifted him into 24th place in the NBA's all-time scoring list, above Adrian Dantley. "We made shots and we took them out."
The Spurs outrebounded the Sixers 50-41 on the way to their 10th straight home victory.
Bench player Spencer Hawes led the way with 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting for Philadelphia, who slipped to 15-20 for the season with their third straight defeat.
"This would have been a tall order if we had eight days rest," 76ers coach Doug Collins said after his team's fourth game in five nights.
"This team (the Spurs) is as good as any team in the NBA."
ROAD RUN
Duncan was surprised to hear that Philadelphia had just ended a marathon eight-game run on the road, finishing with a 2-6 record.
"I didn't know they had been out on the road that long," he said. "That last game of that trip usually you try to give it your all, but you're usually dead out there. I can understand that."
With Danny Green and Ginobili each making two early three-pointers, the Spurs raced into a 31-21 lead after the opening quarter.
San Antonio continued to outshoot Philadelphia and with Duncan, Green and Ginobili all reaching double figures, they padded their advantage to 54-42 by halftime.
Parker exploded in the third, scoring 11 points with a dazzling array of step-back jump shots and driving layups as the Spurs forged ahead 81-63 and there was no way back from there for the Sixers.
"(Manu) was great to see," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of Ginobili, who has produced roller-coaster form this season.
"He's had to slowly get back his athleticism. His confidence is always there because he's such an experienced guy. But his body has caught up and he looks as good as he's looked in a while."

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Spurs smack Sixers to ride high in the West

(Reuters) - Tony Parker and the San Antonio Spurs maintained course with a swagger in their bid for supremacy in the hotly contested Western Conference with a 109-86 rout of the road-weary Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
Four-times All-Star guard Parker recorded 20 points and five assists while Manu Ginobili added 19 points and Tim Duncan 16 as the Spurs improved their record to 27-9 with a commanding display on home court.
Coming off their first loss in eight games, a 100-83 thrashing by the Knicks in New York on Thursday, San Antonio kept up the pressure on the pacesetting Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers for top spot in the West.
"Our guys played well tonight," Duncan told reporters after his 16-point tally lifted him into 24th place in the NBA's all-time scoring list, above Adrian Dantley. "We made shots and we took them out."
The Spurs outrebounded the Sixers 50-41 on the way to their 10th straight home victory.
Bench player Spencer Hawes led the way with 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting for Philadelphia, who slipped to 15-20 for the season with their third straight defeat.
"This would have been a tall order if we had eight days rest," 76ers coach Doug Collins said after his team's fourth game in five nights.
"This team (the Spurs) is as good as any team in the NBA."
ROAD RUN
Duncan was surprised to hear that Philadelphia had just ended a marathon eight-game run on the road, finishing with a 2-6 record.
"I didn't know they had been out on the road that long," he said. "That last game of that trip usually you try to give it your all, but you're usually dead out there. I can understand that."
With Danny Green and Ginobili each making two early three-pointers, the Spurs raced into a 31-21 lead after the opening quarter.
San Antonio continued to outshoot Philadelphia and with Duncan, Green and Ginobili all reaching double figures, they padded their advantage to 54-42 by halftime.
Parker exploded in the third, scoring 11 points with a dazzling array of step-back jump shots and driving layups as the Spurs forged ahead 81-63 and there was no way back from there for the Sixers.
"(Manu) was great to see," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of Ginobili, who has produced roller-coaster form this season.
"He's had to slowly get back his athleticism. His confidence is always there because he's such an experienced guy. But his body has caught up and he looks as good as he's looked in a while."
Six San Antonio players got into double figures on a night when the home team outshot their opponents by 48 percent to 42 from the field.

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Pettersson: Golf on 'witch hunt' of long putters

KAPALUA, Hawaii (AP) — Carl Pettersson says the proposed rule to ban the anchored stroke for long putters feels like a "witch hunt," and that golf's governing bodies were only reacting to three of the last five major champions using a belly putter.
"It seems silly to ban something that's been around for 40 years," Pettersson said in his first comments since the U.S. Golf Association and Royal & Ancient Golf Club announced plans Nov. 28 to outlaw anchored strokes. "It's unfortunate. I feel like I'm 16 years behind because I haven't putted with anything else for 16 years."
Pettersson, who qualified for the Tournament of Champions by winning at Hilton Head, began using a broom-handle putter that he anchors to his chest between his sophomore and junior year at North Carolina State.
Keegan Bradley (PGA Championship), Webb Simpson (U.S. Open) and Ernie Els (British Open) used a belly putter to win their majors.
Two more months of comment period remain before the rule becomes official, and then it does not take effect until the next Rules of Golf is published Jan. 1, 2016.
Even as the long putters were getting more attention, Pettersson made one of the most compelling cases to keep them. It is the only putting stroke he has used during his 10 years on the PGA Tour.
Pettersson long has argued that he has spent thousands of hours practicing the stroke, which did not come naturally to him, and that to start over would put him at an unfair disadvantage. He was said to be among those who might consider a lawsuit if the rule is adopted, though the easygoing Swede said he would see how this year unfolded.
"I don't know," he said when asked if he would challenge the rule. "I haven't made up my mind yet. I'm just going to sit back and see what happens."
In the meantime, he has no plans to change putters.
Simpson said he had been practicing on occasion with a short putter in case of a ban, and Bradley had some fun at the World Challenge last month when he grabbed a short putter on the practice green at Sherwood and made a 20-foot putt.
Both showed up at Kapalua with their belly putters.
"I'm not going to change," Bradley said. "I'm not even thinking about it, to be honest. I'm going to wait for the rule to pass first, and then I'll think about what to do."
Pettersson said he tinkered with a few grips during his month at home in North Carolina, though not to the point that he practiced on a real green. He also said he was not surprised by the decision, saying it became clear in the last few months that the USGA and R&A were leaning toward a ban.
"It feels a bit like a witch hunt to me," Pettersson said. "It was a pure reaction to Keegan and Ernie and Webb. They keep harping on the younger generation using them, but I think they're going to ban it because it looks bad. But you have strong arguments from other players, too."
Tiger Woods, Steve Stricker and Graeme McDowell are on a long list of players who use conventional putters and believe an anchored stroke should go away, saying it takes the skill out of putting because the top part of the club is anchored to the body.
What concerned golf's top officials is that players no longer were using an anchored stroke out of desperation to improve their putting, but as a way to putt better.
"There's no argument that it's a better way to putt because then everybody would be using it," Pettersson said. "If it was easy, everybody on the PGA Tour would be using it. So I don't know where they got that from. It's just a different way of putting."
The PGA Tour can set its own rules, and there has been speculation that when the rule passes, the tour would adopt it before 2016 to avoid the long putters getting too much attention over the next few years.
Bradley said a fan called him a cheater at the World Challenge, which prompted a statement from the USGA that reminded fans the putting stroke remains legal.
A spokesman said PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem would not comment until a players' meeting in two weeks at Torrey Pines. Pettersson won't be at the meeting because he does not plan to play the Farmers Insurance Open.
"There's so much speculation. I just wish people would say what's going on," Bradley said. "From what I've heard, the rule is not going in for three years. I haven't heard what the tour is going to do. I know it's a touchy subjection. I would prefer for it to go three years so we aren't rushed into it. I think that would be the fair way to do it."
Pettersson said he was surprised not to have heard from Finchem, and that his hope was that golf officials weren't talking only to those opposed to long putters. He did say, however, that USGA executive director Mike Davis tried to call him a few weeks ago.
"I didn't know it was him, so it went right to my voicemail," Pettersson said.
Did he call him back?
"No," Pettersson said. "I just didn't want to talk about it. And there's nothing I could do."
Davis said he has tried to call a number of players who use long putters before and after the announcement of the proposed rule.
"I've just reached out and said, 'If you want to talk about it, I'm happy to, but don't feel you need to call back,'" Davis said. "We realize there are two sides — many sides — to this issue and we just wanted to reach out. It's not so much to try to convince them of our point of view, it was more listening to theirs.

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INTERVIEW-Golf-Poulter seeks final piece in major puzzle

Jan 2 (Reuters) - Still feeling a little giddy after a barn-storming finish to his 2012 campaign, Ian Poulter is itching to plug the only hole in his otherwise glittering career resume by winning a major championship.
The fashion-conscious Englishman, widely regarded as one of the best putters in the game, has achieved virtually everything else in professional golf and says landing one of the four majors would fulfil a long cherished dream.
Poulter will launch his 2013 campaign this week at the PGA Tour's season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii and readily admits he has been unable to work out the final piece of the major puzzle.
"I don't know what it takes," the flamboyant Englishman told Reuters in a recent interview. "If it means taking off 20 weeks before playing in a major, then I would take 20 weeks off. If it means playing five in a row to win one, then I would do that.
"I've tried a lot of things but I just need to keep doing what I am doing, to be honest with you. I just need to keep working on the same things.
"You need to ride a bit of luck in these majors at certain times to be able to pick one up. No question, I'd really love to win one."
Poulter rebounded from a slow start to last season with a spectacular run of success and consistency that included three top-10 finishes in the majors and his second World Golf Championships (WGC) crown.
"It was an amazing back half of the season," said the 36-year-old, who sealed a two-shot victory in the elite HSBC-WGC Champions Tournament at Missions Hills in China in November.
"The first part of the year was very solid, then three top-10s in the majors ... I must be doing something right. And then I got to the Ryder Cup and backed that up with some great golf."
POULTER SPARK
Late on the second day of the Ryder Cup at Medinah Country Club, Poulter provided the spark which inspired Europe's astonishing, come-from-behind victory over the United States.
The matchplay specialist finished with five consecutive birdies to earn one of two valuable points in the fourballs, giving his team a slim hope of retaining the trophy as they headed into Sunday's concluding 12 singles trailing 10-6.
"I still get goosebumps just talking about it," Poulter said of his scintillating display in the fourballs. "How it happened I just don't know. It all happened in slow motion.
"It was amazing to see the atmosphere change in the team room that night," he recalled. "The spirit, it just changed. Guys were pumped up ... we just felt there was that little glimmer of hope."
Poulter was one of eight European players who won that Sunday and ended the week at Medinah with a perfect 4-0-0 record as his team stunningly triumphed by 14-1/2 points to 13-1/2.
"That Ryder Cup far surpasses anything I've ever felt before on a golf course," said the 12-times European Tour winner.
Four months later, Poulter is ready to launch his 2013 PGA Tour season on the Hawaiian island of Maui in an elite, winners-only field of 30 at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
Asked to outline his goals for this year, he replied: "I've got lots of goals ... keep working on the same things to improve and to get better and hopefully pick up some titles along with that first major.

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Poulter seeks final piece in major puzzle

Still feeling a little giddy after a barn-storming finish to his 2012 campaign, Ian Poulter is itching to plug the only hole in his otherwise glittering career resume by winning a major championship.
The fashion-conscious Englishman, widely regarded as one of the best putters in the game, has achieved virtually everything else in professional golf and says landing one of the four majors would fulfill a long cherished dream.
Poulter will launch his 2013 campaign this week at the PGA Tour's season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii and readily admits he has been unable to work out the final piece of the major puzzle.
"I don't know what it takes," the flamboyant Englishman told Reuters in a recent interview. "If it means taking off 20 weeks before playing in a major, then I would take 20 weeks off. If it means playing five in a row to win one, then I would do that.
"I've tried a lot of things but I just need to keep doing what I am doing, to be honest with you. I just need to keep working on the same things.
"You need to ride a bit of luck in these majors at certain times to be able to pick one up. No question, I'd really love to win one."
Poulter rebounded from a slow start to last season with a spectacular run of success and consistency that included three top-10 finishes in the majors and his second World Golf Championships (WGC) crown.
"It was an amazing back half of the season," said the 36-year-old, who sealed a two-shot victory in the elite HSBC-WGC Champions Tournament at Missions Hills in China in November.
"The first part of the year was very solid, then three top-10s in the majors ... I must be doing something right. And then I got to the Ryder Cup and backed that up with some great golf."
POULTER SPARK
Late on the second day of the Ryder Cup at Medinah Country Club, Poulter provided the spark which inspired Europe's astonishing, come-from-behind victory over the United States.
The matchplay specialist finished with five consecutive birdies to earn one of two valuable points in the fourballs, giving his team a slim hope of retaining the trophy as they headed into Sunday's concluding 12 singles trailing 10-6.
"I still get goosebumps just talking about it," Poulter said of his scintillating display in the fourballs. "How it happened I just don't know. It all happened in slow motion.
"It was amazing to see the atmosphere change in the team room that night," he recalled. "The spirit, it just changed. Guys were pumped up ... we just felt there was that little glimmer of hope."
Poulter was one of eight European players who won that Sunday and ended the week at Medinah with a perfect 4-0-0 record as his team stunningly triumphed by 14-1/2 points to 13-1/2.
"That Ryder Cup far surpasses anything I've ever felt before on a golf course," said the 12-times European Tour winner.
Four months later, Poulter is ready to launch his 2013 PGA Tour season on the Hawaiian island of Maui in an elite, winners-only field of 30 at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
Asked to outline his goals for this year, he replied: "I've got lots of goals ... keep working on the same things to improve and to get better and hopefully pick up some titles along with that first major.

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