SHORT CORNER
Inter's late equaliser in vain as Lazio win Cup shootout
Lazio reached the Coppa Italia semi-finals with a 4-3 shootout win over Inter Milan who had forced a 1-1 draw with a penalty from the last kick of extra-time on Thursday.
Ciro Immobile put Lazio ahead in the second period of extra time but Mauro Icardi levelled from the spot in the 125th minute of an extraordinary match featuring missed chances, outstanding goalkeeping, a red card and two key VAR decisions.
Icardi's goal was in vain, however, as Lazio goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha saved two penalties, from substitutes Lautaro Martinez and Radja Nainggolan, to give his side the win in the shootout and a semi-final against AC Milan.
EPL January transfer spending plummets
AFP
Premier League spending in the January transfer window fell for the first time since 2012, with clubs paying a total of £180 million ($235 million) for new players, according to football finance experts at Deloitte.
Nearly a third of the total expenditure was accounted for by Chelsea's outlay of around £55 million for Christian Pulisic from Borussia Dortmund, according to the figures.
Last year's winter transfer window saw top-flight clubs spend £430 million, with big-money moves including defender Virgil van Dijk to Liverpool for £75 million.
The £180 million transfer bill means total gross spending by Premier League clubs in the 2018/19 season is an estimated £1.4 billion, the second-highest season ever following record spend of £1.9 billion in 2017/18.
Kagawa joins Besiktas
AFP
Borussia Dortmund's Japanese international midfielder Shinji Kagawa on Thursday joined Besiktas on loan for the rest of the season, the Turkish club said.
The 29-year-old former Manchester United player had reportedly been a target of struggling French club Monaco.
Besiktas in a statement said Kagawa would be "a part of its team on loan until the end of the season".
Kagawa had earlier passed a medical examination after arriving in the city on Thursday to complete the deal.
'PSG chief not fit for UEFA post'
AFP
La Liga president Javier Tebas has urged UEFA to block the election of Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi to its executive committee.
Al-Khelaifi has been put forward by the European Club Association to be one of its two members on UEFA's primary decision-making body.
His election must still be formally ratified at the UEFA congress on February 7 in Rome.
"His nomination must be rejected because it violates all the rules of good governance," Tebas said in a written statement sent to AFP on Thursday.
"Not only because of the (PSG) case in terms of financial fair-play, but also because (Al-Khelaifi) is president of beIN Sports, one of the main television rights holders of UEFA."
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