Digest

SOCCER

Ronaldo equals record in his 1,000th game

Cristiano Ronaldo scored for a record-equaling 11th consecutive Serie A game in his 1,000th professional match as Juventus extended its league lead on Saturday with a 2-1 win over basement club SPAL.

The 35-year-old tapped in six minutes before the break to equal the mark held by Gabriel Batistuta and Fabio Quagliarella.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has scored 25 goals in all competitions this season for Juve, including 16 in his current run of 11 matches.

Aaron Ramsey added a second after an hour, before Andrea Petagna pulled one back from the spot for SPAL, amid controversy as the penalty was awarded following a VAR review despite the pitch-side monitor not working.

The victory got Juve back to winning ways away from home after consecutive defeats against Napoli and Hellas Verona, and ahead of next week's first-leg trip to Lyon in the Champions League last 16.

Four-midable Messi fires Barcelona top

With a hattrick in the first 40 minutes and another goal near the end on Saturday, Lionel Messi ended his worst scoreless run in six years in the Spanish league and put Barcelona back at the top of the standings.

Messi led Barcelona to a 5-0 rout of Eibar on a day fans protested against club president Josep Bartomeu at Camp Nou. The victory moved the Catalan club two points ahead of Real Madrid, which lost 1-0 at Levante.

The Spanish powerhouses play El Clasico in Madrid next weekend, and this week have last-16 matches in the Champions League－Barca visits Napoli on Tuesday, with Real hosting Manchester City on Wednesday.

Barcelona's fourth league win in a row also helped ease some of the pressure on Bartomeu, who was jeered by sections of the crowd.

Slavia stands with China in virus fight

Czech top-flight team Slavia Prague has expressed solidarity with China in fighting against the novel coronavirus.

During Saturday's 2-0 home win over SFC Opava, Slavia players wore jerseys featuring the message "Stay strong Wuhan", in English and Mandarin, to show support to the Chinese people in the fight against the virus.

The same message was also displayed in front of the players' pre-match line-up and on the big screens at Sinobo Stadium in the Czech capital. The club also plans to hold an online Wuhan-themed jersey auction to raise funds for supplies for medical workers fighting the epidemic in China.

"We want to express, in our own way, our solidarity with our Chinese friends at this difficult time," said Slavia chairman Jaroslav Tvrdik.

Slavia, which is currently top of the Czech league, became a "brother club" of Chinese Super League side Beijing Guo'an in 2018.

SIPG striker Hu joins Wuhan Zall on loan

Shanghai SIPG announced on Saturday that striker Hu Jinghang will join hometown club Wuhan Zall on a one-year loan for the 2020 season.

SIPG said the move is one its strategies to provide more opportunities for young players and help them gain more match time.

Born in 1997 in Ezhou, Hubei province, Hu was once a leading player in the Chinese national Under-23 team. He made his first appearance for SIPG in 2016, coming off the bench in an AFC Champions League playoff against Thai side Muangthong United.

In 2017, Hu joined Henan Jianye on loan, contributing three goals and four assists during his 27 appearances to earn him the Chinese Super League's 2017 Best Rookie award.

Last term, Hu grabbed three goals for SIPG.

CFA set to introduce extra transfer window

The Chinese Football Association (CFA) announced on Saturday that an extra transfer window will be introduced before the kick-off of its affiliated professional leagues, which have been delayed due to the coronavirus epidemic.

According to a statement issued by the CFA, the extra window, which will last no less than three weeks, will be open exclusively to players and clubs registered with the CFA.

"The CFA found that its registered professional clubs, affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, have been struggling to complete player transfer dealings before February 28, the winter window deadline set by FIFA," the statement said.

The opening and closing dates of the extra window will be decided depending on the development of the coronavirus epidemic, according to the statement.

The CFA has also applied to FIFA to adjust China's summer transfer window.

BASKETBALL

Wade hails Heat help at jersey retirement

Dwyane Wade went through a long list of thank-yous as he delivered a 20-minute speech at his jersey retirement ceremony on Saturday night, mentioning everyone from his business manager and the Miami Heat ball boys to Pat Riley.

"I could have gone on for an hour," Wade said following the ceremony at halftime of the Heat's 124-105 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. "This is about me for sure, but this is about all of us at the same time－the city of Miami, teammates over the years, everyone who has sacrificed, rooted and cried. We all did this together. I didn't do this by myself."

Wade's wife helped to hoist his No 3 jersey to the rafters, where it joined the retired jerseys of four other Heat legends－Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Shaquille O'Neal and Chris Bosh.

Xinhua - Agencies