The Hindu : Sport / Football : Morales nets Osasuna's winner

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 18, 2005

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Morales nets Osasuna's winner

MADRID: Richard Morales scored in the 26th minute to earn lowly Osasuna a 1-0 victory over third-place Sevilla in the Spanish league on Saturday. The Uruguay international volleyed home from a cross by French midfielder Ludovic Delporte to deliver a blow to Sevilla's hopes of a spot in next season's Champions League. Host Sevilla, whose defeat at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium ended a run of three straight victories, could drop several places in the standings.

Osasuna's victory was its second in succession after a 12-game winless run and virtually ensured the club won't drop into second division at the end of the season. Osasuna rose to 14th place with 37 points, 13 clear of the relegation zone. In another 32nd round game, Atletico played out an uneventful 0-0 draw with Espanyol.

Bolton wins

In the English Premier League, El Hadji Diouf scored a 58th-minute goal to lift Bolton to a 2-1 victory against Charlton, moving Wanderers up to fifth place and closing in on fourth — the final Champions League berth from the Premier League.

Bolton took advantage of Liverpool's 2-2 draw with Tottenham at Anfield to move ahead of sixth-place Reds in the race to play next season in Europe's most lucrative club tournament. Sami Hyypia scored in the 63rd minute to salvage a point for Liverpool.

``We are looking towards Everton now rather than looking below and wondering who is going to catch us,'' Bolton manager Sam Allardyce said.

Chelsea leads the league with 81 points and could clinch its first league title in 50 years as early as next weekend against Fulham. Arsenal is next with 70 points, followed by Manchester United (67), Everton (54), Bolton (52) and Liverpool (51).

The results:

Spanish League: Osasuna bt Sevilla 1-0; Atletico Madrid drew with Espanyol 0-0; Real Sociedad bt Deportivo la Coruna 1-0.

English Premier League: Bolton bt Charlton 2-1; Liverpool drew with Tottenham 2-2; Crystal Palace drew with Norwich 3-3; Fulham drew with Manchester City 1-1; Southampton drew with Aston Villa 2-2. — AP

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