Digest

SOCCER

Koeman favorite to take reins at Barca

Barcelona has fired Quique Setien as coach, the club confirmed on Monday, with Dutchman Ronald Koeman the favorite to succeed him.

"The new coach will be announced in the coming days as part of a wide-ranging restructuring of the first team," Barcelona said on Twitter.

Setien was only appointed in January but has paid the price for Barca surrendering the La Liga title to Real Madrid and then being humiliated by Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

His exit was finalized during an emergency board meeting at Camp Nou, which saw Netherlands head coach Koeman emerge as the preferred choice to take charge. Former Tottenham and Espanyol boss Mauricio Pochettino has also been linked with the job.

Barcelona also announced next year's presidential elections, scheduled for June, will be brought forward to March 15. Fans angry with president Josep Maria Bartomeu had hoped they would be held immediately.

Klopp says he could retire post-Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp says he might turn his back on soccer once his present contract with Premier League champion Liverpool ends in 2024.

The 53-year-old German had wanted to take a year off after he left Borussia Dortmund in 2015 but Liverpool came calling that October asking him to replace Brendan Rodgers.

Since then he has guided the Reds to the Champions League trophy in 2019 and this year ended a 30-year wait for a domestic league title. However, he told German website Sportbuzzer that taking a year out in 2024 will give him time to reflect on what he wants to do next.

"I will take a year off and ask myself if I miss football," Klopp said. "If the answer is in the negative, then that will be it for Jurgen Klopp as a coach."

Klopp said of Liverpool's forthcoming Premier League title defense: "We want to chase our opponents and continue to be a super unpleasant team that is not fun to play against. We're not defending any titles, we want to get new ones, we've only just started winning."

Silva returns to Spain with Sociedad switch

Spanish midfielder David Silva has agreed a two-year contract with Real Sociedad following his departure from Manchester City, the La Liga club announced on Monday.

The 34-year-old spent a decade with City and made his final appearance as a substitute in Saturday's 3-1 defeat by Lyon in the Champions League quarterfinals. He is expected to join his new Sociedad teammates in the coming days for preseason training.

The 2020-21 La Liga campaign is scheduled to begin on Sept 12.Sociedad finished sixth last season to qualify for the Europa League.

Silva won 11 domestic trophies in his time in Manchester and is widely regarded as one of the Premier League's finest imports.

City said a statue will be erected next year in his honor, while a pitch at the club's training ground will also be named after him.

Silva, who arrived at City from Valencia in 2010, is the fourth-highest scorer in Spain's history and sixth for all-time appearances, and was part of the squads which won the 2010 World Cup and two European championships, in 2008 and 2012.

BASKETBALL

Fred on fire as red-hot Raptors shred Nets

Fred VanVleet scored 30 points and led Toronto's sizzling 3-point attack as the defending NBA champion Raptors beat the Brooklyn Nets 134-110 in the opening game of their first-round playoff series on Monday.

VanVleet went 8 of 10 from 3-point range and the Raptors shot 22 of 44 from beyond the arc as they maintained playoff intensity even without any fans attending postseason games at Disney's Wide World of Sports. The Raptors' 22 3-pointers matched a season high and set a franchise playoff record.

"We didn't really get that playoff atmosphere in terms of that, but I thought we hyped ourselves up," VanVleet said.

"I thought this is the most locked in we've been all year. It felt like guys were amped up and energized. Having won one (title), it kind of puts you at a peace throughout the year, and now it's time to kick it into gear. I thought we were pretty engaged. I loved our energy, our attentiveness and focus. That's all you can ask for."

VanVleet had 11 assists with only one turnover, becoming the first Raptor in franchise history to combine 30-plus points and 10-plus assists in a playoff game.

TENNIS

'Health at heart of' Halep withdrawal

World No 2 Simona Halep announced on Monday that she has pulled out of the 2020 US Open due to COVID-19.

"After weighing up all the factors involved and with the exceptional circumstances in which we are living, I have decided that I will not travel to New York to play the US Open," Halep said through social media.

"I always said I would put my health at the heart of my decision."

"I therefore prefer to stay and train in Europe. I know the United States Tennis Association and Women's Tennis Association have worked tirelessly to put on a safe event and I wish everyone there a successful tournament," added the Romanian, who won the Prague Open on Sunday.

Six of the top eight women in the WTA rankings won't play in New York, including world No 1 Ash Barty of Australia and defending champion Bianca Andreescu of Canada.

No 5 Elina Svitolina from Ukraine, No 7 Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands and No 8 Belinda Bencic of Switzerland also pulled out of the Grand Slam.

Xinhua - Agencies