Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has left Anfield by mutual consent, the Premier League club confirmed on Thursday. The 50-year-old’s position had been in doubt since it emerged on Wednesday that talks over his future with Reds chairman Martin Broughton and managing director Christian Purslow had broken down.

Ethiopian athletics legend Haile Gebrselassie will make his first career start at the New York Marathon, making the November event his first major US marathon appearance, race officials said on Wednesday.

It has been a long road back to the top of British horse racing for Henry Cecil, but the ten-times champion trainer issued a bullish report on his two fillies, Timepiece and Aviate, ahead of Friday’s Oaks at Epsom.

Pakistan included paceman Shoaib Akhtar and former captain Shoaib Malik in their 15-man squad for the Asia Cup to be played in Sri Lanka later this month, selectors announced on Thursday.

Zimbabwe pulled off a spectacular double against India in a tri-nations series match at Harare Sports Club here on Thursday, winning with three wickets and a huge 11.4 overs to spare.

Samantha Stosur stormed into the French Open final on Thursday, beating Jelena Jankovic 6-1, 6-2, and she will become the first Australian woman in 30 years to capture a Grand Slam title if she wins again on Saturday.

Nelson Mandela met with South Africa’s national football team on Thursday, the same day the country’s ruling party said its most famous citizen will attend the World Cup’s opening game and the final.

Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe has revealed he feared his World Cup dream was over after a practical joke by England assistant manager Franco Baldini.
Defoe nervously waited to find out if he would be included in England’s final 23-man squad for the World Cup on Tuesday before finally receiving a call from Baldini on behalf of boss Fabio Capello.

England arrived in South Africa on Thursday morning hoping a favourable first-round draw can be the catalyst for a serious World Cup challenge.
Cool, clear conditions greeted some of the most watched performers in the global televised football arena when they landed at Johannesburg international airport with manager Fabio Capello.

Brazil weathered a Zimbabwe storm before scoring twice late in the opening half to set up a 3-0 victory on Wednesday in a World Cup warm-up game here.
It was easy in the end for the team ranked first in the world against one that does not even feature among the top 100, but the South Americans stamped their authority only after surviving several goalmouth scares.