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Napoli Club, Fans Pay Tribute to Maradona on 4th Anniversary of his Death

(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)
(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)
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Napoli Club, Fans Pay Tribute to Maradona on 4th Anniversary of his Death

(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)
(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)

Napoli fans and club officials paid tribute to Diego Maradona on the fourth anniversary of his death, flocking to murals of the Argentina great around the city on Monday.
Napoli coach Antonio Conte, captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo and president Aurelio De Laurentiis laid flowers at two of the murals, while fans gathered below the huge mural of Maradona in the Quartieri Spagnoli that acts as an unofficial museum to Maradona, The Associated Press reported.
Fans chanted Maradona’s name and lit smoke in the blue color of the shirt Maradona wore both with Napoli and Argentina.
Maradona died at 60 on Nov. 25, 2020 of a heart attack, two weeks after being released from a hospital in Buenos Aires following brain surgery.
He led Napoli to its first two Serie A titles in 1987 and 1990 and the club's stadium was renamed Stadio Diego Armando Maradona upon his death.
Napoli won its third Italian league title in 2023 and again leads Serie A this season.

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Asian Champions League to Expand from 24 to 32 Teams

Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)
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Asian Champions League to Expand from 24 to 32 Teams

Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)

The Asian Champions League is set to expand from 24 to 32 teams, the region's governing body for football said Tuesday, adding it will "promote inclusivity and excellence".

The move will take effect from next season once it is signed off by the Asian Football Confederation's executive committee, the AFC said, hailing it as a "landmark expansion".

The group phase of the continent's top club competition is split into two sections, East and West, before going into the knockout rounds.

The structure will remain broadly the same, but the two groups will from 2026-27 increase from 12 to 16 teams each.

The top six in each group will automatically progress to the last 16 while clubs in seventh to 10th will go through to a newly established knockout stage playoff.

The tournament has been branded the AFC Champions League Elite since 2024/25.

The last 16 and quarter-final matches in the 2025/26 campaign take place this week in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Sports

Chance to Reclaim Top Rank Is Extra Motivation for Alcaraz in Barcelona

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain attends a press conference at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. (EPA)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain attends a press conference at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. (EPA)
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Chance to Reclaim Top Rank Is Extra Motivation for Alcaraz in Barcelona

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain attends a press conference at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. (EPA)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain attends a press conference at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. (EPA)

Carlos Alcaraz said the opportunity ‌to quickly reclaim the world number one ranking from his big rival Jannik Sinner provided him additional motivation for this week's Barcelona Open, but steady improvement during the clay season remained his top priority.

Alcaraz surrendered his Monte Carlo title and the top rank to Sinner after Sunday's final in Monaco, but the Spaniard will have the chance to climb back to his perch by capturing the trophy on familiar territory in Barcelona.

The twice champion's hopes are boosted by the absence ‌of Sinner in ‌the draw, after the Italian took a ‌break ⁠following back-to-back triumphs ⁠in Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo over the last few weeks.

"I won't miss him this week," Alcaraz joked in his pre-tournament press conference on Monday.

"I saw that I have to win the tournament here if I want to get the number one ranking back. The battle between Jannik and ⁠myself is great. It probably provides extra ‌motivation.

"But we're focused and my ‌mind is set on trying to stay on the path we're on, ‌trying to keep improving. We're clear about what we ‌need to do in training and in matches. That's the main goal, results and points are extra motivation."

Alcaraz, who begins his campaign against Otto Virtanen later on Tuesday, will remain world number two ‌if he fails to win the title.

The Spaniard hopes to play a full schedule on ⁠clay this ⁠season with events to follow in Madrid and Rome ahead of his French Open title defense beginning in Paris on May 24.

Though stung by his loss to Sinner, the 22-year-old said he would only get better thanks to their growing rivalry.

"Jannik is one of those players who makes me better. He makes me realize my weaknesses, what I really need to focus on in each practice session and each match, so I try to improve every day," Alcaraz said.

"It's great to have him as a focal point and to see him achieving all that he's achieving."

Sports

Draper Vows to Overcome Injury Woes after Barcelona Exit

Jack Draper of Britain in action during his first round match against Martin Etcheverry of Argentina at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. EPA/Alejandro Garcia
Jack Draper of Britain in action during his first round match against Martin Etcheverry of Argentina at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. EPA/Alejandro Garcia
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Draper Vows to Overcome Injury Woes after Barcelona Exit

Jack Draper of Britain in action during his first round match against Martin Etcheverry of Argentina at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. EPA/Alejandro Garcia
Jack Draper of Britain in action during his first round match against Martin Etcheverry of Argentina at the Barcelona Open tennis tournament in Barcelona, Spain, 13 April 2026. EPA/Alejandro Garcia

Jack Draper vowed to work his way out of his injury woes after being forced to retire with a right leg problem midway through his first-round match against Tomas Etcheverry at the Barcelona Open on Monday.

The 24-year-old Briton, who returned to action in February after six months out due to a niggling left arm injury, pulled up while trailing 1-4 in the deciding set of his meeting with Argentine Etcheverry to cast doubts on his ⁠fitness for the ⁠clay season.

"Sad to retire in Barcelona. I've tried hard these last months to stay positive and give my all," Draper, who tried to soldier on with taping below his right knee, said in a post on social media.

"It ⁠will take time but I will work my way out of this. Thank you for all the support throughout this process."

After an early exit in Dubai in February, Draper shook off the cobwebs to beat 24-times Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic at Indian Wells but his title defense in the Californian desert ended in the quarter-finals against Daniil Medvedev.

The left-hander then suffered another early ⁠defeat in ⁠Miami and pulled out of Monte Carlo to protect his arm, but hoped to kick-start his campaign in Barcelona ahead of the French Open that will begin on May 24.

"I like how he plays, he's a great fighter," Reuters quoted Etcheverry as saying of the former world number four, who has now slipped to 28th in the rankings.

"Hopefully he can recover as soon as he can to get back on tour, because the tour likes him."