Mexican side Tigres UANL became the first team from North America to reach the final of Club World Cup when they beat Brazilian club Palmeiras 1-0 in the semifinal on Sunday.

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After a tepid first half Tigres' French striker Andre-Pierre Gignac got the only goal of the game from the penalty spot in the 54th minute when Luan was adjudged to have pulled down Carlos Gonzalez.

The team from the North, Central American and Caribbean Football Confederation will play the winners of Monday's second semifinal between Bayern Munich and Egyptian side Al Ahly.

The final is scheduled for Thursday.

LIVERPOOL, England -- The Premier League trophy still sits on display in Liverpool's club museum at Anfield, but they can start to take off the red ribbons and label it for a return to previous owner after Manchester City's rampant 4-1 victory made this season's title race a formality and ended the defending champions' hopes of retaining their crown.

To suggest that City's win signalled a changing of the guard would be over-playing things somewhat, considering that Pep Guardiola's team had won back-to-back titles prior to Liverpool's first in 30 years last season.

For City, they will believe their victory -- a first at Anfield since 2003 and for Guardiola as a manager - was merely a sign of normal service being resumed. This, though, was much more; it was a statement to the rest of the Premier League that they are, by some distance, the best team in the country.

"We have done brilliantly, so I can't deny how happy we are," Guardiola said. "To come here and finally win is very important. It is an important win, but in February, nobody is champions. I cannot predict the future, but all I can predict is work and work. Tomorrow, we look to the next game."

Guardiola is right to be pragmatic, but it would be foolish to understate the manner of his team's latest victory, because they tore Liverpool apart.

- Ratings: 2/10 Alisson woeful | Foden, Sterling star
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City dominated the game, exposed the defensive shortcomings of Liverpool full-backs Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold and embarrassed goalkeeper Alisson Becker by clinically punishing the Brazilian international by scoring twice from his second-half mistakes.

Meanwhile, an outstanding performance by Phil Foden, who made City's second goal and superbly scored the fourth, highlighted just why the 20-year-old is regarded as the jewel of the club's youth academy. Raheem Sterling, Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva were also unstoppable in midfield.

Having lost their last two home games, against Burnley and Brighton, Liverpool's confidence going into this fixture was clearly deflated, but they ended it not only having been beaten again, but with their opponents making them look ordinary.

Less than a year after Jurgen Klopp's team were hailed as one of the best -- if not the best -- teams of the Premier League era, their defence of the title has crumbled after just half a season and the objective now is simply to secure qualification for the Champions League.

Liverpool are 10 points behind leaders City, having played one game more than Guardiola's men, so they can forget about the title. Keeping West Ham, Everton and Chelsea at bay in the battle for fourth is the priority and that is not a foregone conclusion for a team that lacks energy and ideas and will be without their best defender, Virgil van Dijk, until next season.

"It's very difficult to explain that we lost 4-1," Klopp said. "We scored our goal and in that moment, the game can go in two directions, but Alisson made two massive mistakes, gave two goals and then there was a genius situation from Phil Foden.

"But we just have to carry on," Klopp continued. "It's not the best moment of our lives and we will try everything (for the top four). There are enough games to secure that, but we have to win them."

City have no such concerns. Manchester United might still harbour faint hopes of challenging for the title, but this result moved their neighbours five points clear of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's team and City still have a game in hand, so there is little hope for the chasing pack.

Guardiola's team are simply playing too well to be caught, despite the ongoing absence of Kevin De Bruyne and Sergio Aguero.

They have won 14 consecutive games in all competitions and could even afford to miss another penalty before sealing this latest victory. Gundogan's first-half miss from the spot was the third penalty City have missed against Liverpool in their last four league games, but it didn't matter in the end.

It was City's control of the ball, movement in the attacking third and determination to target Alexander-Arnold and Robertson that made them so devastating. Liverpool had no response and looked one-paced and predictable, even though Mohamed Salah gave them hope of a victory by scoring from the penalty spot on 63 minutes to cancel out Gundogan's opener, scored just after half-time.

Salah's goal was Liverpool's first in the league at Anfield for 411 minutes, which tells you everything about their form slump over the past two months. Klopp's men could not build momentum after equalising, though, and City quickly regained the upper hand.

John Stones had a goal ruled out for offside, but two minutes later Gundogan made it 2-1 after Alisson's clearance had fallen to Foden, who dribbled into the box before teeing up the German to net from close range.

Sterling quickly 3-1, heading in Bernardo's cross at the far post after another Alisson mistake, before Foden, in front of the watching England manager Gareth Southgate, struck an unstoppable fourth on 83 minutes.

The celebrations on the City bench were testament to the importance of Foden's goal and the victory that it confirmed. This was a game that could have halted their form surge, six days before a tricky home clash with Tottenham, but instead they breezed through and consigned Liverpool to the role of outgoing champions.

BURLINGTON, Wash. – In a season where the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series sees the return of several big-paying events, Skagit Speedway is set to add its name to that list with the Skagit Nationals.

The three-day event, Friday to Sunday, Sept. 3-5, will have a $175,000 purse in total.

Friday and Saturday’s events will pay $10,000-to-win and Sunday’s event will award $25,000-to-win. All three nights will also pay $1,000-to-start.

“The World of Outlaws Sprint Cars are going through an exciting growth and we want to be a part of that,” said Steve Beitler, promoter at Skagit Speedway. “The Skagit Nationals is a new important marquee event for us and I’m proud to partner with World of Outlaws for it. We’re excited to kick off the Fall West Coast Swing for the Series with an impressive payout on the line for the drivers.”

The World of Outlaws has run 38 events at the three-eighths-mile track since the birth of the series in 1978. This year will be the first time since 1995 that the series has run a tripleheader at the track.

Rising star Logan Schuchart swept the last doubleheader event in 2019, putting on a thrilling show for fans against the best sprint car drivers in the world.

One of the stoutest fields in Outlaw history will be in attendance at the September event, with drivers like Schuchart, two-time defending champion Brad Sweet, 10-time Outlaw champion Donny Schatz, 2019 Knoxville Nationals champion David Gravel, three-time All Star Circuit of Champions titleholder Aaron Reutzel, Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing driver Sheldon Haudenschild and 2019 Rookie of the Year Carson Macedo all vying for glory.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has said he will consider allowing Ederson to take his side's next penalty after Ilkay Gundogan's missed spot kick during the 4-1 victory over Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.

Despite City winning for the first time at Anfield since 2003 with Gundogan scoring twice and Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden also finding the back of the net, they missed another penalty, having failed to score from the spot in the reverse fixture earlier in the campaign.

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- Man City ratings: Foden 9/10 in stellar performance vs. Liverpool

Guardiola's side have missed three of the six penalties they have been awarded and the City boss said he would not rule out Ederson, who claimed he was the best penalty taker in the team, to strike the next one.

"It's a problem that we have," Guardiola said of his side's penalty record. "In important moments we cannot miss it, and it doesn't matter the taker.

"Again, I'm going to think about Ederson, he might be the taker next time."

The game's main headlines were positive as City took a huge step towards the title with an impressive victory against the reigning champions and Guardiola was full of praise for his players.

"We played in the way you have to suffer here," the ex-Barcelona boss said. "Hopefully next time we can win here with people.

"Anfield is always impressive but with people it is much more. Huge victory for us. Three more points at the end but I take into consideration the fact we won after we missed a penalty and conceded a goal but the way we reacted... that made the difference.

"We started really well. We cannot play like they play, we have to play in a slow rhythm. Second half we adjusted our set up and the quality of the players did the rest.

"Phil Foden is a guy who keeps the ball really well, he arrives so aggressive but he is also still so young. When he plays wide it is more easy for him, he will learn.

"The action for the second goal and the fourth goal, we know what a huge talent he is but he is still young and hopefully he can understand he can still improve.

"It is an important win but it is February. Of course the gap to fifth is big right now and that means for the Champions League for next season is important but 10 wins in a row in this period is something exceptional.

"Today is the time to talk about this but tomorrow we look to the next game."

Jurgen Klopp has said that a top four finish is the "main target" for Liverpool this season after they suffered a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday.

Goalkeeper Alisson made two massive blunders as Liverpool's Premier League title hopes took a massive blow as they sit 10 points behind Pep Guardiola's side having played a game more.

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Liverpool remain in fourth place but are only one point ahead of West Ham United and three points clear of Everton who have two games in hand.

When asked if Liverpool faced a tough battle to remain in the top four, Klopp told Sky Sports: "That is our main target, that is clear.

"We will try everything -- there is enough games to play to secure that but we have to win games."

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson ruled the reigning champions out of the title race after their 1-0 home defeat to Brighton on Wednesday.

Klopp also defended Alisson after his crucial mistakes against City which saw Liverpool lose three consecutive matches at Anfield for the first time since 1963.

"It is true as well we did not give him a lot of options, especially the first one," he added.

"Second yeah, he just mishit the ball, maybe he had cold feet, it sounds funny but don't know the situation. He has saved our lives many times, no doubt about that, tonight he made mistakes."

Liverpool's title defence continued to fall apart as they were humbled 4-1 by league leaders Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday.

Ilkay Gundogan was at the heart of the drama throughout with his brace more than making up for a shocking penalty miss. Mohamed Salah had managed to pull Jurgen Klopp's men back into the game from the spot himself, but between Gundogan's second, Raheem Sterling's header and Phil Foden's thunderbolt, it was the champions-elect who walked away with the victory off the back of two goalkeeping howlers from Alisson.

After going 68 games unbeaten at home, Liverpool lost for the third straight time at Anfield, the first three-game losing streak for the Reds at home since 1963.

Positives

For the first hour or so there was a decent structure within the back four which, given their injury problems, was impressive. That changed in the last half hour or so, as repeated lapses in concentration were ruthlessly punished.

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Negatives

The hosts gifted Manchester City possession time and time again and while that may have been to their benefit defensively, it showcased the growing hesitancy that is bleeding into their style -- which comes from a lack of confidence in front of goal. They were often slow, lethargic and constantly held back when in dangerous positions on the counter-attack.

Manager rating out of 10

4 -- Klopp stuck with what he knows by not risking either of his new centre-backs for this game, and that conservative approach was pretty evident throughout the course of the encounter. There was a real lack of urgency from the Reds in comparison to what we're used to seeing from them, and the manager's substitutions clearly showed that they were playing for a draw after the equaliser.

Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)

GK Alisson, 2 -- After a solid display and a good save prior to City's opener, Alisson quite literally handed the visitors all three points with two disastrous errors in the space of three minutes.

DF Trent Alexander-Arnold, 4 -- His attacking prowess is still one of the Reds' most lethal weapons, as he showed with the long ball through to Salah that led to the penalty, but he was outmanoeuvred on several occasions by Sterling in crucial moments.

DF Jordan Henderson, 5 -- The Englishman looked assertive in a makeshift CB/DM role but was regularly caught too far forward and, understandably, out of position.

DF Fabinho, 5 -- His initial discipline and hard work in the first half-hour was undone by continually struggling with Foden and giving away a careless penalty.

DF Andrew Robertson, 5 -- Despite allowing City a lot of space down the flank, he was generally one of Liverpool's better players -- right up until he gave Foden too much space for City's fourth.

MF Thiago Alcantara, 5 -- Recovered well from a poor early challenge that could've earned him a red card, and yet his silky passing wasn't enough to help create any real momentum.

MF Georginio Wijnaldum, 4 -- Was like a deer in the headlights for large spells of the game and can be held responsible for not tracking his man in the lead up to two of the opposition's goals.

MF Curtis Jones, 7 -- The youngster was confident in making quick and important judgements, and because of that, the decision to take him off deserves to be questioned.

FW Mohamed Salah, 7 -- Was silent for most of the afternoon on Merseyside and yet still managed to win a penalty and convert it in style.

FW Roberto Firmino, 6 -- The Brazilian fought hard, tried to create opportunities and was the most active of the front three, even if he did fall away in the second half.

FW Sadio Mane, 5 -- Sloppy, uninspired and absent will likely be three of the primary words used to describe a poor day at the office for Mane.

Substitutes

DF Kostas Tsimikas, N/R -- Helped to steady the flow of the game for Liverpool after they went 4-1 down.

MF James Milner, 5 -- Was often chasing shadows as Pep Guardiola's side turned things up a notch in the second half.

MF Xherdan Shaqiri, 5 -- Couldn't really get anything going upon being introduced in front of a rampant City midfield.

Katie Boulter says she can win "a lot of matches" at Grand Slam level as she prepares to launch the British bid when the Australian Open starts on Monday.

The nation's five other singles stars play their opening matches on Tuesday.

"It's the stage I want to be on," said Boulter, who is playing at her first Slam since last year's Australian Open.

Boulter is ranked 371st in the world and is using a protected injury ranking to play at Melbourne Park.

After rising to 82nd in February 2019, her progress was stalled by a long-term back injury but she showed her capability with a string of encouraging performances at last week's Gippsland Trophy.

An opening win over Russia's Anna Kalinskaya was backed up by a notable victory over American teenager Coco Gauff, with Boulter then pushing three-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka - one of the tournament favourites in Melbourne - before succumbing in three sets.

"I do feel like I can win a lot of matches at this level, as I feel like this week has shown. It's exciting for me," she said.

"But I cannot put a lot of pressure on this week, it's just another week in the calendar, in terms of me mentally and the way I address it.

"If something good comes of it, amazing. If it doesn't then I go back to working hard and doing everything I can.

"I am sure I will have many other chances to compete here and in the other Grand Slams."

Can Konta rediscover Grand Slam form?

As Britain's highest-ranked player, Johanna Konta is leading the nation's hopes in the singles tournaments.

A Melbourne semi-finalist in 2016, the 29-year-old is seeded 13th in the women's draw and has reunited with coach Dimitri Zavialoff in a bid to rediscover her mojo at the majors.

Twelve months ago, Konta lost to Tunisia's Ons Jabeur in the Melbourne first round. That defeat came shortly after Konta had revealed the extent of a long-standing knee injury which still continues to hamper her.

Once the disrupted 2020 season restarted, she lost in the US Open second round to Romanian world number 77 Sorana Cirstea and then was knocked out in the French Open first round by 16-year-old Gauff.

"My management of my knee continues to get better and better and I'm still very hopeful that I'll get to a point where I will be pain-free at some point," Konta said last week.

With Zavialoff in her corner, Konta reached the semi-finals of the French Open, as well as the last eight at Wimbledon and the US Open, in 2019.

Jones wants to 'inspire' on Grand Slam debut

A new British face will join Konta, Boulter and Heather Watson in the women's singles, with 20-year-old Francesca Jones having reached her first Grand Slam main draw.

Jones, who comes from Bradford, has a rare genetic condition that means she was born with three fingers and a thumb on each hand, three toes on her right foot and four toes on her left.

After being told by doctors she would never play professional tennis, Jones has defied the odds.

She overcame issues with her balance as a child and still competes with a light racquet and small, modified grip to increase her control.

"It's great to be here and to be able to get my message across, which is please don't have any limits and keep pushing yourself," said Jones, who has attracted considerable media interest at Melbourne Park.

"If I can have any positive impact on children, adults, and they can take strength from my story and create their own, then that would be great. It's nice to have the platform here."

In the men's singles, Dan Evans is Britain's leading hope and goes into the event on the back of winning his first ATP title.

Following Sunday's triumph, 30-year-old Evans maintained a measured outlook and said his target was improving his performances in the Grand Slams.

"It was good to be out there and win, but like I said last year, this year I wanted to do well in the bigger events," he said.

"I played good tennis the last three matches, probably some of the best stuff I've played. But my focus is on this week now."

Evans has been pitted against Cameron Norrie - describing facing the only other Briton in the draw as "unfortunate" - and claimed he was the "underdog" after the world number 67 beat him at the Battle of the Brits exhibition event before Christmas.

Kyle Edmund - a semi-finalist in Melbourne in 2018 - will not play because of a persistent knee injury, while Andy Murray was unable to travel after contracting coronavirus last month.

In the men's doubles, Joe Salisbury and his American playing partner Rajeev Ram are looking to retain the title which they won last year.

Seven-time Grand Slam champion Jamie Murray is hoping to challenge alongside Brazilian Bruno Soares, with the 2016 champions having won their first tournament back together after reuniting for the 2021 season.

In the wheelchair events, Lucy Shuker, Gordon Reid, Alfie Hewett and Andy Lapthorne provide the British representation.

Fighting fit at 44, Rachael Grinham wins third Australian Open title
By JORDAN TILL – Squash Mad Correspondent

Former world number one Rachael Grinham battled through five games against No.3 seed Jess Turnbull to claim her third Australian Open title.

In the process, she broke compatriot Vicki Cardwell’s 25-year record as the oldest women’s PSA WorldTour
champion of all-time!


We were treated to two very exciting matches with contrasting results on finals day at the Volkswagen Australian Open in Bega, New South Wales.

Top seed Grinham raced out to an early 9-4 lead in the first game of the women’s final against fellow Queenslander Turnbull.

The world No.66 Turnbull was determined to fight her way into the match and she did so, levelling it up at 9-9. From there they traded game balls back and forth before Grinham eventually claimed a tense first game 15-13.

The second was a similar story with Grinham building a 7-2 lead only to win it 11-9 in the end.

The third and fourth games had a different feel about them as Turnbull improved her accuracy to control the T and force the match to a fifth game.

Grinham’s experience really showed in the fifth game and ultimately made the difference throughout the match as she played the crucial points well to claim her third Australian Open title 16 years after her first.

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Rhys Dowling continued his solid run through the event to claim his first Australian Open and only his second PSA title, while Grinham rolled back the years to make her experience tell with a  through five games to claim her third Australian Open title.

No.4 seed Dowling took on top seed fellow Northern Territorian Joseph White in a first Australian Open final for both men.

Dowling took a head-to-head advantage into the final having never lost to his younger opponent and after a nervous start he looked to keep that record as he ran away with the first game.

It was a similar story in the second and third games as White made a few errors from good positions and Dowling showed a bit more severity in his shots, finishing off the match strongly in straight games.

If you missed seeing it live you can still watch the replays on Squash Australia Facebook page or YouTube channel at www.squashaustralia.tv

Squash Australia would like to acknowledge and thank the following sponsors for their support of this event: Volkswagen, Tarra Motors, Bega Squash Club, BLK, Dunlop and  Ashaway.

Volkswagen Australian Open 2021, Bega Country Club, Bega, NSW, Australia.

Women’s Final:
[1] Rachael Grinham (AUS) bt [3] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) 15-13, 11-9, 7-11, 5-11, 11-8 (50m)

Semi-finals:
[1] Rachael Grinham (AUS) bt [4] Selena Shaikh (AUS) 11-6, 11-4, 11-5 (20m)
[3] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) bt [2] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) 11-7, 11-3, 11-3 (28m)

Quarter-finals:
[1] Rachael Grinham (AUS) bt [6] Jessica Osborne (AUS) 12-10, 11-5, 11-5 (22m)
[4] Selena Shaikh (AUS) bt Hannelize Human (RSA) 9-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-7 (34m)
[3] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) bt [5] Alex Haydon (AUS) 11-5, 11-7, 11-6 (24m)
[2] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) bt [8] Tamika Hunt (AUS) 11-7, 7-11, 13-11, 13-11 (45m)

First Round:
[1] Rachael Grinham (AUS) bye
[6] Jessica Osborne (AUS) bye
Hannelize Human (RSA) bt [7] Kate Winters (AUS) 11-9, 11-5, 11-6 (21m)
[4] Selena Shaikh (AUS) bye
[3] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) bye
[5] Alex Haydon (AUS) bye
[8] Tamika Hunt (AUS) bt Remashree Muniandy (AUS) 12-10, 11-4, 11-6 (23m)
[2] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) bye

Men’s Final:
[4] Rhys Dowling (AUS) bt [1] Joseph White (AUS) 11-4, 11-6, 11-8 (32m)

Semi-finals:
[1] Joseph White (AUS) bt [3] Thomas Calvert (AUS) 6-11, 10-12, 11-6, 11-4, 11-3 (58m)
[4] Rhys Dowling (AUS) bt [2] Nicholas Calvert (AUS) 11-7, 11-7, 12-10 (39m)

Quarter-finals:
[1] Joseph White (AUS) bt [7] Javed Ali (PAK) 11-6, 11-3, 2-0 ret. (22m)
[3] Thomas Calvert (AUS) bt Peter Vaughan (AUS) 11-6, 3-11, 11-2, 11-6 (40m)
[4] Rhys Dowling (AUS) bt [5] Rohan Toole (AUS) 11-2, 5-11, 11-2, 11-5 (31m)
[2] Nicholas Calvert (AUS) bt [8] Solayman Nowrozi (AUS) 11-9, 11-1, 14-12 (56m)

First Round:
[1] Joseph White (AUS) bt Mark Canavan (AUS) 11-0, 11-6, 11-1 (15m)
[7] Javed Ali (PAK) bt Corey Bedingfield (AUS) 11-8, 11-6, 11-7 (24m)
Peter Vaughan (AUS) bt [6] Benjamin Ratcliffe (AUS) 11-4, 11-8, 12-10 (31m)
[3] Thomas Calvert (AUS) bt Tate Zak Norris (RSA) 11-4, 11-8, 11-6 (27m)
[4] Rhys Dowling (AUS) bt Mansoor Zaman (PAK) 11-6, 11-2, 11-7 (22m)
[5] Rohan Toole (AUS) bt Declan Smith (AUS) 11-4, 11-4, 11-3 (16m)
[8] Solayman Nowrozi (AUS) bt Robert Palmer (AUS) 11-3, 11-5, 11-4 (29m)
[2] Nicholas Calvert (AUS) bt Aidan Parkes (AUS) 11-3, 11-4, 11-3 (22m)

Pictures courtesy of Squash Australia

Louis Rees-Zammit dives in at the corner for Wales' second try, helping the hosts come from behind to lead 18-13 against Ireland in the Six Nations at the Principality Stadium.

FOLLOW LIVE: Wales v Ireland - watch, listen & follow text updates

WATCH MORE: Beirne try hands 14-man Ireland shock lead

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Former Wales captain Sam Warburton says Italy are "not good enough" and so promotion and relegation should be introduced to the Six Nations, giving teams like Georgia the opportunity to compete.

Italy's thrashing by France in the 2021 Six Nations opener was their 28th consecutive defeat in the competition.

HIGHLIGHTS: Italy 10-50 France