THE SOCCER REPORT
Soccer Recap: Messi, Rapinoe named Ballon d'Or winners, Liga MX playoffs down to four
Dec 3, 2019, 7:01 am
Lionel Messi is the only player to win six Ballon d'Or trophies. Credit: Getty Images
Messi wins record 6th Ballon d'Or, Rapinoe wins first
Lionel Messi is back on top of the men's soccer pyramid as the "best in the world" after winning the famed Ballon d'Or (Golden Ball) award for the first time since 2015 - breaking a tie with Cristiano Ronaldo for most all-time with six. Ronaldo finished third in the 2019 voting with Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk finishing second.
In the women's category, USA forward Megan Rapinoe was named the winner ahead of England's Lucy Bronze and fellow USA teammate Alex Morgan. It is only the second year that a Women's Ballon d'Or is awarded.
The Ballon d'Or has been awarded since 1956 by France Football magazine and is considered the standard for recognizing the world's best player, even over FIFA's annual Player of the Year award.
English Premier League
Top six: 1. Liverpool (40), 2. Leicester City (32), 3. Man City (29), 4. Chelsea (26), 5. Tottenham (20), 6. Wolves (20)
Bottom three (relegation): 18. Southampton (12), 19. Norwich City (11), 20. Watford (8)
Scoring leader: 13 - Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
Assists leader: 9 - Kevin De Bruyne (Man City)
Spanish La Liga
Top six: 1. FC Barcelona (31), 2. Real Madrid (31), 3. Sevilla (30), 4. Real Sociedad (26), 5. Athletic Bilbao (26), 6. Atletico Madrid (25)
Bottom three: 18. Celta Vigo (13), 19. Espanyol (9), 20. Leganes (6)
Scoring leader: 10 - Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Assists leader: 5 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
German Bundesliga
Top six: 1. Monchengladbach (28), 2. RB Leipzig (27), 3. Schalke 04 (25), 4. Bayern Munich (24), 5. Dortmund (23), 6. Freiburg (22)
Bottom three: 16. Hertha Berlin (11), 17. Cologne (8), 18. Paderborn (5)
Scoring leader: 16 - Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Assists leader: 8 - Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)Italian Serie A
Top six: 1. Inter Milan (37), 2. Juventus (36), 3. Lazio (30), 4. Cagliari (28), 5. Roma (28), 6. Atalanta (25)
Bottom three: 18. Genoa (10), 19. SPAL (9), 20. Brescia (7)
Scoring leader: 17 - Ciro Immobile (Lazio)
Assists leader: 9 - Luis Alberto (Lazio)French Ligue 1
Top four: 1. PSG (33), 2. Marseille (28), 3. Angers (24), 4. Bordeaux (23)
Bottom three: 18. Dijon (15), 19. Nimes (12), 20. Tolouse (12)
Scoring leader: 10 - Moussa Dembele (Lyon)
Liga MX Playoffs
The playoffs stage in Mexican football kicked off with the quarter-finals, a round in which all top four seeds feel over the two-leg series.
Quarterfinal results:
- Club Leon 4-5 agg. Monarcas Morelia
- Queretaro 2-6 agg. Necaxa
- Santos Laguna 3-6 agg. Monterrey
- Club America 2-4 agg. Tigres UANL
Liga MX Femenil Playoffs
The final of the female Liga MX division kicked off it's two leg series with a 1-1 draw between Monterrey rivals Tigres UANL and Rayadas in front of a league-record 41,615 attendance. The return leg is scheduled for Saturday, December 7 at Estadio BBVA.
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Here's a fresh, unique perspective on Houston Astros dilemma at first
Apr 24, 2024, 10:35 am
Mike Tauchman hit his first two homers of the season, and the Chicago Cubs took a five-run first-inning lead in a 7-2 win over Houston on Tuesday night that dropped the Astros 10 games under .500 for the first time since 2016.
Cody Bellinger hit a two-run homer in the first off J.P. France (0-3) and Tauchman hit a three-run drive. Tauchman added a solo homer in the eighth against Seth Martinez and tied his career high of four RBIs.
“I was just fortunate to put a couple of good swings on it,” Tauchman said after a pair of opposite-field drives to left. “We’re having fun right now and played good ball."
Bellinger left after the fifth inning with bruised right ribs. He appeared to get hurt running into the center-field wall after a ball in the fourth. X-rays showed no sign of fracture and is to be evaluated further Wednesday.
Houston has lost three straight and six of seven. At 7-17, the last-place Astros are 10 games under .500 for the first time since an 18-28 start in 2016.
“I sense guys are tired of the situation we’re in. We’ve just got to get over the hump,” first-year manager Joe Espada said. “The effort is there, but we’ve got to be better.”
Jordan Wicks (1-2) allowed two runs and five hits in a season-high six innings with no walks and four strikeouts. Chicago has won seven of 10.
“It was frustrating for me,” Wicks said of his first four starts. “I felt like I put a lot of stress on the bullpen. ... To go six tonight was awesome.”
France (0-3) gave up five runs, five hits and four walks in five innings.
“It’s hard to recover when you’re down five,” Espada said. “He kept it close after that.”
Jake Meyers had a solo homer for Houston.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Astros: LHP Framber Valdez (elbow soreness) could rejoin the rotation this weekend when the club plays a two-game series against Colorado in Mexico City. … RHP Cristian Javier flew to Houston on Tuesday for further evaluation of the neck soreness that landed him on the 15-day injured list.
Cubs: The club placed RHP Kyle Hendricks (low back strain) and LHP Drew Smyly (right hip impingement) on the 15-day injured list and designated INF Garrett Cooper for assignment. Chicago recalled RHP Hayden Wesneski, LHP Luke Little and INF Matt Mervis from Triple-A Iowa. … OF Ian Happ was back in the lineup after missing two straight games with left hamstring tightness.
UP NEXT
Houston’s Spencer Arrighetti (0-2, 7.08 ERA) faces fellow RHP Jameson Taillon (1-0, 1.80) on Wednesday, Taillon’s second start this season after recovering from a strained back.