Ukrainian twins banned for life for match-fixing: TIU
Ukrainian twin brothers Gleb and Vadim Alekseenko were banned from tennis for life and fined $250,000 each for “multiple match-fixing offenses”, the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) said on Monday.
The 35-year-olds, who are both ranked outside the top-1000 in the world, were found guilty of the offenses at lower level Futures tournaments in Romania, Russia, Germany and Turkey between June 2015 and January 2016, Reuters reported.
The brothers were found to have breached sections of the tennis anti-corruption code that deals with soliciting a thirdparty to place a bet on matches in which they then contrived the outcome.
“The findings of guilt and imposition of the lifetime suspensions means that with immediate effect both players are prohibited from playing in or attending any sanctioned events organized or recognized by the governing bodies of the sport,” the TIU said in a statement.
Even as the noise swelled and the pressure mounted, Gareth Southgate stood firm as the youngest England side this century recorded a statement win in Spain.
After an electric first half that had witnessed three slick breakaway goals, England was creaking, as Paco Alcacer headed in for 3-1 and Jordan Pickford almost gifted Rodrigo a second, AFP reported.
On the touchline, Southgate stayed arms folded, making one change before the 85th minute, and that came in the 76th, Kyle Walker replacing a weary Ross Barkley.
Perhaps he believed England could hold on. Perhaps there was merit in giving these players the chance to do it too.
After all, they had reached the World Cup semifinals, but with the advantage of a fortuitous draw. When Croatia and Belgium, twice, came calling, England came up short.
Now they have handed Spain its first competitive defeat at home for 15 years, scoring three times in the first half against a team rejuvenated under a new coach in Luis Enrique.
It was only a month ago Spain had obliterated Croatia 6-0 and, despite the 2-1 scoreline, outplayed England at Wembley too.
“It’s a beautiful feeling,” said Raheem Sterling, who scored twice, along with another from Marcus Rashford. “It was a brilliant team performance.”
When the whistle blew after a breathless 98 minutes at the Estadio Benito Villamarin, the talk was of England’s most impressive victory since it beat Germany 5-1 in Munich in 2001.
There was the shootout triumph against Colombia and the summer stroll over Sweden to go within a game of the World Cup final. England has seen off Germany, France and Brazil as well in friendlies.
But in terms of a competitive match, you have to go back 16 years to Sapporo, and David Beckham’s penalty against Argentina, for England’s last win against a World Cup winner.
This was not a World Cup, nor even a European Championship, and Southgate will not pretend the surprisingly compelling Nations League is as competitive as either.
But Spain was desperate to win. When Pickford scrambled the ball off Rodrigo, Spain’s players harangued the referee for a penalty. When Sergio Ramos headed home in the 98th minute, they sprinted back to the center circle, in the hope of one final attack.
England held on, another injection of belief gained for a team that had an average age of just over 23, its youngest since the turn of the century.
“With a lot of young players, it’s important they have good experiences, that they enjoy playing for England and feel the way we want to play,” Southgate said. “They should be able to progress from this, it’s up to us now.”
England could now even win Group 4 if it beats Croatia at home next month but Southgate will know there is work to be done.
England’s sense of panic in the second half in Seville was reminiscent of its frenzied play under pressure against Croatia in Russia. Pickford, the instigator of two goals scored, could then have caused two conceded, fumbling for the corner that Alcacer turned in and then overplaying against Rodrigo.
“He’s got the technical ability to find passes into midfield, although maybe not to do a Cruyff turn in his own box,” Southgate said with a smile. “It’s something to work on.”
‘Lazy, suicidal’
Spain’s defeat to not only burst the bubble of optimism surrounding new coach, it also dredged up unpleasant memories of La Roja’s woeful World Cup campaign in Russia.
“The doubts that seemed buried after the horrors of Russia are back,” said daily newspaper Marca on Tuesday.
“They took a whack from reality that sent them back three months.”
Newspaper AS said Spain should have had a penalty but delivered a harsh assessment of the side’s performance, saying “the midfield was lazy and the defense was too high up and suicidal”.
“There’s a Madrid fan in the office who says he needs just one minute of a game to know which version of Sergio Ramos is playing,” wrote Juan Carlos Diaz in Marca.
“When he plays in Seville (his birthplace) he practically always shows off ... he subtracts more than he contributes.
“It seems that in his brain he only hears one sentence. ‘You are the best Sergio, the best.’ It might be too late now but maybe people shouldn’t say it so much.”
La Liga President Javier Tebas said Spain’s fans also let the country down after some of them booed the English national anthem. “National anthems represent the noblest and most profound feelings of many people. They must always be respected,” he said on Twitter.
“We have to apologize to the English and make that what happened yesterday doesn’t happen again.”