WORLD OF SPORT
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Best debut of the day Jose Quintana dazzled in his first outing for the Chicago Cubs, striking out a season-high 12 in seven innings to beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-0 for a three-game sweep. Acquired by the World Series champions during the All-Star break from the Chicago White Sox for a play-off push, Quintana (1-0) allowed three hits, walked none and joined Matt Garza as the only pitchers in Cubs history to fan 12 on their debut. Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo homered to help the Cubs move over .500 for the first time since June 29. The Cubs hit 10 home runs during the sweep. Ubaldo Jimenez (4-5) allowed six runs and 11 hits, one shy of tying a career-high, over 3 2/3 innings.
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Worst keeping up with current affairs of the day Gareth Bale admits he has no idea if Cristiano Ronaldo will still be a teammate of his at Real Madrid next season. Asked if he thinks Ronaldo wants to leave, Bale told Spanish newspaper Marca: “I’ve not read anything, I haven’t got a clue about what’s going to happen.” Not surprising, really, Bale wanting to keep the club’s all-time leading goalscorer, Fifa World Player of the Year and the man who led the club to a Uefa Champions League and Primera Liga double last term as a teammate. What is more surprising, though, is the Welshman’s revelation that he had, until yesterday, no idea Romelu Lukaku had joined Manchester United for £75 million (Dh360m) last Monday. News must travel slow where Bale lives. ▷▷▷
Best reassurance from your new boss of the day New Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde has laughed off the idea of bringing in new players, saying the best signings were the players already in the dressing room such as Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar. “I’m more than happy with the way things stand,” said Valverde when pressed on the potential signing of Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Marco Verratti. “Happy with the players, happy with their work and their attitude,” he said as his players prepare for their United States trip. “For me, the best signings are the players I already have in my team.”