Briefly
Saudi Arabia replaces football coach
Saudi Arabia made its coaching change official by firing Herve Renard and replacing him with Georgios Donis less than two months before the start of the World Cup.
The 56-year-old Donis, a former Greece international, joins from Al-Khaleej, one of several Saudi Pro League clubs he’s coached. “He has extensive experience in the league, including his most recent post (which) enhances his ability to adapt quickly,” the Saudi soccer federation said in its announcement. Saudi Arabia opens its Group H play at the World Cup against Uruguay on June 15. It also plays Spain and Cape Verde. Donis was a longtime Panathinaikos midfielder who also played in England for Blackburn, Sheffield United and Huddersfield. He has also coached Panathinaikos and Maccabi Tel Aviv, among others.
The appointment brings Renard’s second spell to an end after he returned to Riyadh in October 2024 to replace Roberto Mancini.
The Frenchman, a two-time Africa Cup of Nations winner, came under pressure following a 4-0 friendly loss to Egypt and a 2-1 defeat to Serbia.
Renard’s first spell included Saudi Arabia’s famous 2-1 victory over eventual champion Argentina at the 2022 World Cup.
Sevilla’s relegation fears grow after 2-0 loss to Levante
Sevilla’s struggles continued with a 2-0 loss at Levante that kept the club only one point above the relegation zone in the Spanish league.
Ivan Romero scored a goal in each half for Levante, which stayed second-to-last but only two points from salvation. It has won three of its last four matches.
Sevilla, in 17th place, has lost four of its last five league matches. “We knew it was a tough match. We lost a great opportunity to take a step forward. It hurts,” Sevilla’s Ruben Vargas said. “There are still matches left, we have to remain positive.”
Both teams were awarded penalties that ended being called off after video review.
Also, on Thursday, Oviedo stayed in last place after a 1-1 draw with third-place Villarreal at home.
Now six points from safety, Oviedo was looking for its third straight victory.
Villarreal is five points clear of fourth-place Atletico Madrid, which lost 3-2 at Elche on Wednesday.
Also, on Thursday, Espanyol lost 1-0 at Rayo Vallecano to remain winless in 2026, with 10 losses and five draws.
Rayo moved to 11th place, one position ahead of Espanyol.
On Wednesday, league leader Barcelona beat Celta Vigo 1-0 to maintain a nine-point gap to second-place Real Madrid, which beat Alaves 2-1 on Tuesday.
Abhay enters maiden PSA Gold-level quarters in Zurich
India’s Abhay Singh registered a notable win over Egyptian world No 13 Aly Abou Eleinen to enter his maiden PSA Gold-level event quarterfinals at the Grasshopper Cup squash in Zurich.
World Number 24 Abhay trailed 5-8 in the opening game before recovering to beat the seventh seed 12-10, 11-9 in the second round.
Singh had beaten Eleinen earlier this month at the El Gouna Open in Egypt.
“I stuck to my game plan. Still a few things I can work on. We will go back to the drawing board tonight,” said Singh.
He will play Egyptian world No. 4 Karim Gawad next.
In the opening round, Singh beat Swiss David Bernet 11-9, 9-11, 11-8, while compatriot Ramit Tandon lost to Egypt’s Fares Dessouky 6-11, 9-11.
