Drogba makes instant impact for Shanghai Shenhua - Football
Published: 22 Jul 2012 - 16:47:03
Didier Drogba made an instant impact on his debut for Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua on Sunday, setting up his new team's equaliser in a 1-1 draw away to Guangzhou R&F.
The former Chelsea striker started the game on the bench but came on at half time, almost scoring with his first touch of the ball -- an outrageous 40-yard free kick which Guangzhou goalkeeper Cheng Yuelei tipped wide.
Earlier Shenhua had struggled in the first half after falling behind
to an unfortunate own goal by Brazilian defender Moises on 21 minutes, but the introduction of Drogba instantly transformed the visitors' fortunes.
The game had been one of China's most eagerly-awaited this season, with Drogba-fever having swept the Chinese football world.
Former Japan national team coach Phillippe Troussier, now managing Chinese second division side Shenzhen Ruby, and Italian World-Cup winning coach Marcello Lippi, manager of Guangzhou Evergrande, were in the stands.
Shenhua have struggled badly this season, winning just four of 17 games, but they played with a increased level of confidence when Drogba, a European Champions League winner with Chelsea in May, stepped onto the pitch.
In the 52nd minute of the game the Ivory Coast striker headed just over the bar from a cross from winger Feng Renliang, and was at the centre of every Shenhua move as the side tried to get back into the game.
Drogba's biggest contribution came in the 68th minute with an
exquisite through ball which found Shanghainese playmaker Cao Yunding, who rounded the keeper to equalise for his side.
The match was also notable for being the first time Drogba and Nicolas Anelka have played on the same side. The latter sealed a 175,000 pounds ($273,000) a week move from Chelsea to Shenhua last December.
Drogba was reunited with the Frenchman after sealing a deal that
Chinese and British media have said is worth 200,000 pounds a week, making him the highest-paid player in China and in the top bracket globally.
He was given a hero's welcome when he arrived in China last week to start his two-and-a-half year contract.
Hundreds of fans, many clad in "Drogba 11" shirts, greeted the former Chelsea star at Shanghai's Pudong airport, some carrying flowers, others brandishing his name in English on placards and many jostling to touch him.
Related Shanghai Shenhua News
Super rich hold $32 trillion in offshore havens - Reuters UK
LONDON |
LONDON (Reuters) - Rich individuals and their families have as much as $32 trillion (20 trillion pounds) of hidden financial assets in offshore tax havens, representing up to $280 billion in lost income tax revenues, according to research published on Sunday.
The study estimating the extent of global private financial wealth held in offshore accounts - excluding non-financial assets such as real estate, gold, yachts and racehorses - puts the sum at between $21 and $32 trillion.
The research was carried out for pressure group Tax Justice Network, which campaigns against tax havens, by James Henry, former chief economist at consultants McKinsey & Co.
He used data from the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, United Nations and central banks.
The report also highlights the impact on the balance sheets of 139 developing countries of money held in tax havens by private elites, putting wealth beyond the reach of local tax authorities.
The research estimates that since the 1970s, the richest citizens of these 139 countries had amassed $7.3 to $9.3 trillion of "unrecorded offshore wealth" by 2010.
Private wealth held offshore represents "a huge black hole in the world economy," Henry said in a statement.
(Reporting by Chris Vellacott)
Clock tower and student rooms set to spark debate - Oxford Mail
Clock tower and student rooms set to spark debate
7:00am Monday 23rd July 2012 in News
PLANS have been put forward for a “jewel-like” clock tower and student rooms in the heart of Oxford.
But the architects behind the plan for Oxford University ’s Harris Manchester College are expecting it to generate considerable debate.
It would involve the demolition of what they have described as a “dilapidated” building at 24 Holywell Street in the central Oxford conservation area.
The building would incorporate five student bedrooms with en-suite facilities.
A planning application has been submitted to Oxford City Council , which will make a final decision.
The application says: “Given the relatively modest size of the proposed site, it could have naturally followed that this replacement building should have a similarly modest scale and appearance.”
But it said the college wants a “significant architectural presence on the streetscape” with a “jewel-like quality”.
It adds: “The overwhelming impression of much of the collegiate architecture at Oxford contains a special, rather radiant quality and an architectural sophistication and ambition of the highest possible quality.”
But architects Yiangou said it expected the classical style of the new building would not be universally popular.
It said: “We have not been afraid to rise to the challenge set, although we are aware that our proposal may be the subject of considerable debate.
“We are completely aware of the criticism that may be levelled by the sadly entrenched critique of the modernists within the architectural establishment, but we are also aware that Oxford has thrived on architectural eclecticism.”
Oxford Civic Society chairman Peter Thompson said while the group had yet to reach a view, he expected the plan to attract criticism.
He said: “It is certainly unusual to see a design like this being submitted for a new building at this time, and I expect that there will be criticism that it constitutes ‘pastiche’.
“Some may feel that a more contemporary design would be appropriate.
“However, the scale, composition and materials seem to be very appropriate, and I welcome the rare inclusion of an element, in the form of the tower, which is not simply functional, but adds drama to the building, with even some humour.”
He said it is a “great improvement” on the existing building and would be a “notable new addition” to a “historically-sensitive area”.
The council has charged universities with developing purpose-built student accommodation to take pressure off private homes.
Oxford University and Oxford Brookes University have to keep the number of students in private homes below 3,000 each.
What do you think? Call the Oxford Mail newsdesk on 01865 425500, email news@oxfordmail.co.uk or write to ViewPoints.
Mata wants Olympic gold for Spanish clean sweep - Football
Published: 22 Jul 2012 - 19:17:05
Juan Mata wants Spain to make yet more football history by becoming the first nation to hold the world, European and Olympic titles at the same time with victory at London 2012.
The 24-year-old forward won the World Cup with Spain in 2010 and scored in the final of the European championship in July when they defeated Italy 4-0 in Kiev.
Mata, who also won the FA Cup and Champions League titles this year with English giants Chelsea, is one of three over-aged players in the Spain squad for an Olympic tournament where the bulk of squads must be under 23.
However, he insists neither he nor his compatriots have become jaded by their success.
"It would be amazing to win the Olympic tournament," said Mata on Sunday.
"I have had the opportunity to play in the World Cup and the European Championship and win both.
"Winning a gold medal at the Olympics would complete an amazing summer for me, but also for Spanish football.
"It would be great for us to win a gold medal and that is what we want.
"I think we are living a really good moment for Spanish football right now."
Spain, currently training in Scotland, had a boost Saturday when midfielder Iker Muniain was able to run during a practice session at Strathclyde University as he looked to overcome a thigh injury.
Related Spain News
Obama visits Colorado to console victims' families - eTaiwan News
Air Force One touched down at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora in the late afternoon for the president's hastily arranged 2½-hour visit, which included a private meeting with the victims' loved ones and a public comment about the shooting early Friday morning at a busy multiplex. Two of the victims served at the base.
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan and Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates were among those who greeted Obama at Buckley.
Obama met with family members at the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora, which treated 23 of the people injured in the mass shooting; 10 remain there, seven hurt critically. He said that he told the families of the victims that "all of America and much of the world is thinking about them."
Republican challenger Mitt Romney said Obama's decision to meet with the families was "the right thing."
The impossible-to-understand killings — apparently the work of an unhinged former doctoral student — briefly silenced the presidential campaign over the weekend. Both Obama and Romney cut short their schedules late last week and closed down their television advertising in Colorado out of respect for the victims and their families.
The president planned just a brief visit to the Denver suburb, where the shots rang out at a multiplex theater early Friday. Twelve of the victims died, 58 were injured.
"I think the president coming in is a wonderful gesture," said Hogan, Aurora's mayor. "He's coming in, really, to have private conversations with the families. I think that's totally appropriate."
Hogan told ABC television's "This Week" that it "certainly means a lot to Aurora to know that the president cares."
After the Colorado stop, Obama is flying to San Francisco, where on Monday he'll begin a previously scheduled three-day campaign trip that includes a speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Reno, Nevada, multiple fundraisers in California, Oregon and Washington state, and a speech to the National Urban League convention in New Orleans.
Aides said Obama received updates Saturday from his homeland security adviser, John Brennan, on the investigation into the shooting and the attempts by authorities to gain access to the suspect's apparently booby-trapped apartment.
For Obama, the Colorado visit was to be his second to the state in just over three weeks. Last month, he flew to Colorado Springs to share the pain of homeowners whose houses had been turned to charred heaps by a record outbreak of wildfires.
Obama and Romney used previously scheduled campaign appearances on Friday to focus attention on the need for national unity in the aftermath of the shootings. Their campaign teams rescheduled Sunday television news show appearances by top aides and surrogates, essentially providing a break in what has been an increasingly negative campaign.
The Colorado rampage injected a new tone into the campaign after Obama and Romney had clashed repeatedly over the economy, health care programs for the elderly, and the Republican candidate's tax returns.
Obama was set to start his second day of events in Florida when the shootings occurred, prompting his team to address the violence at a previously scheduled rally in Fort Myers, Florida, and scrapping an event in suburban Orlando. Obama told supporters in Fort Myers that the shootings served as a "reminder that life is very fragile."
"Our time here is limited and it is precious. And what matters at the end of the day is not the small things, it's not the trivial things," he said. "Ultimately, it's how we choose to treat one another and how we love one another."
Romney echoed Obama's call for unity, saying at a previously scheduled event in Bow, New Hampshire, that he joined with the president and first lady in offering condolences for those "whose lives were shattered in a few moments, a few moments of evil in Colorado."
"The answer is that we can come together. We will show our fellow citizens the good heart of the America we know and love," Romney said.
Yet, beyond the calls for a higher purpose, the shootings could raise the profile of gun rights in the presidential campaign, an issue which has played a minor role so far.
As a senator, Obama voted to leave gun makers and dealers open to civil lawsuits, and as an Illinois state lawmaker he supported a ban on all forms of semiautomatic weapons and tighter state restrictions generally on firearms.
Tomlinson gives Hampshire a promotion boost (From Daily Echo) - This is Southampton
Tomlinson gives Hampshire a promotion boost
7:13pm Sunday 22nd July 2012 in Sport
James Tomlinson emerged as Hampshire's hero as they collected a thrilling two-run victory over Essex in their LV County Championship Division Two clash at Chelmsford.
The left-arm fast bowler took 5 for 86 including the wicket of Adam Wheater who was last out for 98 as the hosts fell tantalisingly short of their 360 run target.
Wheater's swashbuckling innings spanning 111 deliveries contained four sixes and a dozen fours before he holed out to Sean Ervine on the long-on boundary.
Earlier Tomlinson seemed to have put the visitors in sight of a comfortable triumph when he roared in after lunch with three quick wickets.
Essex, who had resumed on 102 for 2, reached the interval on 184 for 4 after losing overnight pair Mark Pettini and Billy Godleman to Dimitri Mascarenhas in the first hour.
A half-century partnership between Ryan ten Doeschate and Greg Smith revived Essex and sent them into lunch with the match nicely poised.
But then Tomlinson dismissed them both for 42. First, Smith drove to Jimmy Adams at extra cover and ten Doeschate then cut into the hands of Neil McKenzie in the gully.
Soon afterwards and with 12 runs added, Graham Napier drove into the hand of Adams to give Tomlinson his third success with his 22-ball spell costing only five runs.
That left Essex 222 for 7 and defeat staring them in the face but they were to stage an exciting fightback through the heroics of Wheater and the aggression of Harbhajan Singh.
They put on 68 in 16 overs before Harbhajan was stumped for 40 - having struck seven boundaries including a six - - by Michael Bates after giving left-arm spinner Danny Briggs the charge.
That was the signal for the stocky Wheater to step up a gear and after David Masters fell lbw to Briggs, he scored all 40 of a last wicket partnership with Tom Craddock that included two successive sixes out of the ground against paceman David Balcombe.
But just when a famous victory beckoned, the wicketkeeper found the hands of Ervine to leave the Hampshire players jumping around in celebration.
Wheater looked crestfallen as he made his way off the field, no doubt aware that his failure to take Essex to the winning post had dealt a severe setback to their hopes of promotion.
They came out of the game with three points while Hampshire collected 19 to keep alive their dreams of returning to the top-flight at the first attempt very much alive.
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TREASURIES-US 10-year yields sink to record low on Spain - Reuters
* 10-yr yield falls to 1.4365 pct; lowest since early 1800's
* 2-yr yield slips to 10-month low below 0.2 percent
* Safe-haven demand expected to support this week's sales
By Lisa Twaronite
TOKYO, July 23 (Reuters) - U.S. 10-year Treasuries rallied in Asian trading on Monday, sending yields to historic lows, as heightened fears about Spain's ability to stave off a sovereign bailout prompted investors to seek out safe-haven fixed income assets.
Over the weekend, the Spanish region of Murcia said it would seek government financial assistance, and media reported half a dozen governments were ready to follow in the footsteps of Valencia, which said on Friday it would seek help.
Fears also rose about Greece's ability to stay afloat, after its prime minister said on Sunday that the country was in a "Great Depression" similar to the one in the 1930s, as international lenders were scheduled to gather in Athens to discuss the terms of further rescue payments.
The European Central Bank said on Friday that Greek government bonds will be ineligible for banks to use as collateral to borrow from the ECB from July 25.
The 10-year yield was at 1.4415 percent, after dropping as low as 1.4365 percent earlier in the Asian session. That was its lowest level since the early 1800's, according to data compiled by Reuters.
"It is easy to understand that the European situation is not good, which is driving yields down. From now, a lot of the market's direction will also depend on U.S. data," said Tomoaki Shishido, fixed income analyst at Nomura Securities.
Any signs that the slowdown in the U.S. economy is stabilising and weathering the effects of Europe's credit storm would lesson the chances of further stimulus from the Federal Reserve, which could finally put a floor under yields, strategists say.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has said the central bank remains prepared to act if necessary but has so far refrained from outlining any steps.
Investors expect the Fed to eventually decide to either make a third round of bond purchases, known as quantitative easing, or cut the interest it pays banks on their excess reserves.
Expectations of the latter helped push the yield 2-year Treasuries below the 0.2 percent level for the first time since September. It dropped as low as 0.1975 percent before rising to 0.2015 percent, still short of 0.210 percent in Friday's late U.S. trading
"At these yield levels, it is difficult to think about selling Treasuries right now," said a fixed-income fund manager at a Japanese trust bank in Tokyo.
This demand is expected to support the Treasury Department's debt sales this week, he said.
Treasury will sell a combined $99 billion in two-year, five-year and seven-year notes next week, starting on Tuesday with $35 billion auction of two-year notes.
The yield on 30-year bonds stood at 2.532 percent, also down from 2.541 percent in Friday's late U.S. trade.
Golf-Woods brought to his knees by Lytham bunker - Reuters UK
(Adds details, quotes)
* First triple bogey in a major for nine years by Woods
* Former world number one finishes tied for third spot
By Ed Osmond
LYTHAM ST ANNES, England, July 22 (Reuters) - Tiger Woods knelt down to play an extraordinary bunker escape shot on the way to an ugly triple-bogey seven which cost him a chance of winning the British Open on Sunday.
The 14-times major champion carded a final-round 73 to finish in a tie for third spot with fellow American Brandt Snedeker, four shots behind champion Ernie Els of South Africa.
Woods parred the first five holes as he sought to overturn a five-shot deficit on overnight leader Adam Scott before finding a greenside bunker at the sixth.
The American's first attempt to get out from inches away from the wall at the front rebounded back and just avoided hitting Woods.
The former world number one then sank to his knees perched on the edge of the trap and, with one leg extended to keep his balance, he managed to make a strong contact with his ball which struck the lip of the bunker and squirted out across the green.
Woods, who birdied the sixth hole in his opening three rounds, then missed a 40-foot putt for bogey and a five-footer for double-bogey before gratefully sinking his third attempt.
"The problem is if I played left I wasn't assured I could get it to the gallery and get it out of that slope because if it rolls back in the bunker and I'm on the downslope then I've got no backswing," Woods told reporters.
"The game plan was to fire it into the bank, have it ricochet to the right and then have an angle to come back at it. Unfortunately it ricocheted to the left and almost hit me."
Woods's first triple-bogey in a major since 2003 left him six shots behind Scott with 12 holes to play but he quickly got one back with a brilliant chip-in for birdie at the seventh.
Further bogeys at the ninth, 13th, 14th and 15th holes sealed his fate but he strode smiling down the 18th fairway to warm applause from the galleries and finished with a flourish by holing a 10-foot putt for a birdie at the last.
"Overall I'm pleased with the way I played, unfortunately just a couple here and there ended up costing me some momentum, especially today at six," Woods said.
"Again, I left a lot of putts short out there. The greens were a little bit slow and I tried to put some more hit in my stroke but they were dying off the front of the lip." (Editing by Tony Jimenez)
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