Man Utd’s FA Cup comeback punishes 9-man Fulham
MANCHESTER, England - Bruno Fernandes scored twice to put Manchester United into the FA Cup semi-finals with a drama-filled 3-1 win over Fulham who had two players and manager Marco Silva sent off on Sunday.
Fulham appeared to be heading for their first FA Cup semi-final appearance since 2002 after Aleksandar Mitrovic opened the scoring in the 50th minute.
But Erik ten Hag’s team roared back with a vengeance while the Cottagers unravelled in a frenzied stretch midway through the second half that started with Willian’s red card for a handball after a VAR review.
“It was a clear and obvious handball... and I think we already should have been ahead,” Ten Hag said.
A melee erupted and Mitrovic, who appeared to shove the referee with his shoulder, and Silva were also shown red cards.
Silva said his red was for leaving the coach’s area, adding: “Up until the red card we were clearly the best team on the pitch.”
Once order was restored, Fernandes’s ensuing penalty put United on the scoreboard.
Two minutes later, Marcel Sabitzer put the 12-time FA Cup champions ahead with a backheel chip into the net off a cross from Luke Shaw.
Fernandes scored again for good measure seconds before the final whistle.
United will meet Brighton & Hove Albion - who ended fourth-tier Grimsby Town’s dream run in the cup with a 5-0 win earlier on Sunday – in the April 22-23 semi-finals at Wembley Stadium.
Alcaraz back at number one
TOP seed Carlos Alcaraz snapped Daniil Medvedev’s 19-match win streak with a 6-3 6-2 rout in the Indian Wells final on Sunday that will see him leapfrog Novak Djokovic and return to world number one in the rankings. Alcaraz enjoyed a dream start to the matchup of first-time Indian Wells finalists as he got an early break for a 2-0 lead and dropped just six points on serve as he raced through the opening set in 36 minutes. Russian fifth seed Medvedev, who was looking to add another title to the ones he collected in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai over the last month, was unable to stop the bleeding and had no answer for the Spaniard’s brilliance the rest of the way.
Juve with win at Inter
MILAN - Juventus maintained their slim hopes of making it to next season’s Champions League when Filip Kostic’s goal earned them a 1-0 win at Inter Milan in Serie A on Sunday. Kostic struck midway through the opening half to put Juve, who in January were deducted 15 points by an Italian soccer court investigating their transfer dealings, on 41 points after 27 games. They trail fourth-placed AC Milan, who occupy the last Champions League qualifying spot, by six points after the defending champions lost 3-1 at Udinese on Saturday.