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Fbl: Serbia champions Partizan sack coach

Serbia's defending champions Partizan on Monday sacked coach Vladimir Vermezovic in a late bid to halt a series of poor results. Former Partizan player and the club's youth coach Teleoptik, Vuk Rasovic was appointed as his replacement with five matches of the season remaining. After a defeat and two draws, Partizan, seeking a sixth successive title, have seen their 11-point advantage over Red Star Belgrade reduced to just two points. str-ks/nr

Football: Huntelaar hits hat-trick on Schalke return

Holland's Klaas-Jan Huntelaar celebrated his Bundesliga return after six weeks out with a knee injury by netting a hat-trick as Schalke 04 hammered Hamburg 4-1 on Sunday to keep the Royal Blues on course for a Champions League place. After Hamburg took an early lead at the Veltins Arena through Germany's Marcel Jansen, Brazil midfielder Michel Bastos pulled a goal back before 'the Hunter' went on a goal-spree. "The win was highly deserved, especially the margin," said Schalke coach Jens Keller.

Football: Red mist as West Brom swamp Saints

Southampton were more sinners than Saints on Saturday as they slumped to a 3-0 home loss to West Bromwich Albion, ending up with nine players in a stormy encounter which also saw their rivals have a man sent for an early bath. The rot set in for the hosts, still not entirely out of the relegation picture with this loss, after just six minutes, as Marc-Antoine Fortune drove in from close range.

Vallecano's European bid checked by draw with Osasuna

MADRID (Reuters) - Rayo Vallecano's hopes of qualifying for Europe next season suffered a setback when they were held 2-2 at home by La Liga strugglers Osasuna on Friday. The result at the Vallecas stadium left the Madrid-based club eighth on 46 points, two behind seventh-placed Real Betis who host Deportivo La Coruna on Monday. The teams in fifth and sixth position qualify automatically for the Europa League. Pamplona-based Osasuna are 15th on 33 points, five above the relegation zone.

RugbyU: Celtic League table

Celtic League table after Friday's match (played, won, drawn, lost, points for, points against, bonus points, total points): Ulster 21 16 1 4 540 335 10 76 Leinster 21 16 0 5 548 367 9 73 Glasgow 21 15 0 6 521 321 12 72 Scarlets 21 15 0 6 419 365 6 66 Ospreys 21 14 1 6 452 305 4 62 Munster 21 10 1 10 415 364 8 50 Benetton Treviso 21 9 2 10 373 433 5 45

Football: Furth on verge of unwanted Bundesliga record

Bottom side Greuther Furth are just one game away from an unwanted Bundesliga record after their 3-2 defeat to Hanover 96 on Friday left them on the verge of becoming the first team to fail to win any home matches in a league season. Fuerth face Freiburg at their Trolli Arena stadium on May 11 in their last bid to pick up their first German league win at home on their debut season in the Bundesliga.

Lille booed off after squandering 3-0 lead

PARIS (Reuters) - Third from bottom Sochaux staged a spectacular comeback on Friday, scoring three goals in the last 11 minutes to earn a 3-3 Ligue 1 draw and dent Lille's chances of qualifying for next season's Champions League. Two goals from Salomon Kalou and one by Marko Basa put the home team 3-0 up inside 48 minutes. Lille, the 2011 champions, were then booed off the pitch after Sochaux hit back with a double from Vincent Nogueira and a goal by Cedric Kante - all three efforts coming from free kicks.

Football: Bayern boss plays down Real speculation

Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes on Friday played down speculation he is set for a return to the Bernabeu to replace Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid at the end of the season. Heynckes' three-year deal with the Baverian giants finishes on June 30 and the 67-year-old will be replaced by Pep Guardiola, but he dismissed reporters' questions when asked about a possible second stint in Madrid.

Football: Contrite Suarez accepts 10-match ban

Liverpool forward Luis Suarez on Friday said that he did not appeal against a 10-match ban for biting an opponent because he did not want to give "the wrong impression" about his unacceptable behaviour. The Football Association (FA) governing body had earlier revealed that the Uruguay striker had not lodged an appeal after he was suspended on Wednesday for biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic on the arm. The decision means the 26-year-old Uruguay international will miss the final four matches of the English Premier League season and the first six of the next campaign.

Banned Spartak boss Karpin may revert to loudspeaker

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Spartak Moscow boss Valery Karpin will use a different approach in dealing with match officials after receiving a three-game ban for confronting the referee in Sunday's heated derby against bitter city rivals CSKA. Karpin, who was also fined $3,200 by the Russian FA's disciplinary committee after he charged on to the pitch to remonstrate with FIFA referee Sergei Karasev, said he would use a loudspeaker in voicing his opinion next time.
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