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FRANCESCO ACERBI was the oldest player on the pitch in Inter Milan’s memorable Champions League semi-final win over Barcelona.

But he defied his veteran 37 years and centre-back defensive instincts to grab a dramatic 93rd-minute equaliser at the San Siro.

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So yes, it may well have been Davide Frattesi who was the one who actually scored the winning goal to set up Saturday’s final showdown with PSG.

But Inter head to Munich still thanking their old-timer for keeping their Champions League dream alive, desperate to be crowned Kings of Europe for the fourth time.

And not only did Acerbi’s superb striker’s finish epitomise a bonkers two-legged tie against Barcelona.

But that cute, near-post effort to get in front of Ronald Araujo and find Wojciech Szczesny’s top corner may well be his own personal crowning moment of a career that has seen it all. 

Born in the outskirts of Milan in February 1988, Acerbi is now 90 minutes away from completing the circle by leading I Nerazzurri to European glory. 

But his road to the San Siro – the site of his goal that will live long in the memory of all Inter fans – is far longer than the 15 miles from suburban Vizzolo Predabissi.

And it features battles on the pitch with the world’s best strikers but more importantly off the pitch, too, with cancer, depression and alcohol. 

JOURNEYMAN CAREER

Acerbi started out in Serie C at Pavia in 2006 and even featured in the semi-professional Serie D on loan at Renate.

A loan to Spezia’s youth team followed before permanent spells at Reggina, Genoa and Chievo, where he eventually made his top-flight debut. 

AC Milan came calling in 2012 and he was briefly team-mates with the likes of Robinho and Mario Balotelli.

But after just six months of struggling for minutes, he was sold to Genoa, who immediately loaned him back to Chievo.

It wasn’t until Acerbi signed for Sassuolo in 2013 that he finally had stability, spending five seasons there before four at Lazio.

He initially joined Inter on loan in 2022-23 where he was reunited with ex-Lazio boss Simone Inzaghi and made the move permanent the following summer. 

That transfer took his tally to 14 spells with ten different clubs.

FRAN THE MAN

Acerbi scored an all-important header against bitter rivals and former employers AC Milan in April 2024.

That helped his side to a 2-1 win which saw them confirmed as Serie A champions for the 20th time.

A year earlier, towards the end of his loan season, Acerbi came in for huge praise for his performance in the Champions League final.

Inter were ultimately beaten 1-0 by Manchester City but the Italian centre-half managed to keep Erling Haaland quiet and off the scoresheet. 

HEALTH STRUGGLES

However, Acerbi’s toughest challenges have come away from football.

His father died during his short stint at AC Milan, triggering depression which led to him turning and even relying on alcohol to numb the pain and suffering. 

Then upon signing for Sassuolo in 2013 at the start of the next season, Acerbi was diagnosed with testicular cancer. 

A regular health check-up flagged unusual blood test results and he immediately underwent surgery to remove the tumour. 

But having returned to training and competitive action, he failed an anti-doping test. 

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Acerbi denied taking any banned performance-enhancing drugs and it transpired the irregular hormone levels were because the cancer had come back again. 

As a result, the defender had two months of chemotherapy at the start of 2014.

But Acerbi actually credits the two bouts of cancer for “saving” him from the depression and alcoholism.

He candidly explained to La Repubblica in 2019: “After my father died, when I was playing for Milan, I hit rock bottom. 

“It was as if I’d forgotten how to play, or why I was playing. I started drinking and, believe me, I’d drink anything. 

“It might seem like a terrible paradox, but the cancer saved me. I had something new to fight against, a limit to overcome. 

“It was as if I got to start life all over again and saw the world in a way I’d completely forgotten. I stopped being scared. 

“I was thinking to myself, ‘What will you do if it comes back again?’ ‘I’ll face it again,’ I replied.

“Chemotherapy was like stepping into a parallel world, the entrance to which is closer than you could possibly think, so you never leave it again. It’s a world of pain and of courage.

“I think having that illness improved me as a person, cancelling out remorse and regret. 

“I became an observer of my surroundings. I eliminated the superfluous, the negative, but also the illusions. I stopped dreaming big and started to focus on simple targets.”

EURO HERO

Incredibly, Acerbi made his senior Italy international debut later in the same year he underwent the chemotherapy. 

But by 2019, he had still only managed to add two further appearances – one in 2016, one in 2018 – before being brought back into the fold by Roberto Mancini.

And while Acerbi won’t go down as one of the all-time great Italian defenders with the likes of Paolo Maldini, Fabio Cannavaro, Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini et al, he was awarded the top Order of Merit in Italy after being part of the Euro 2020-winning squad.

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He set up the extra-time winner against Austria in the round of 16 then was an unused sub in the quarters, semis and final, where the Azzurri beat England on penalties. 

Acerbi, though, has not added to his 34 caps since 2023 and pulled out of the squad in March 2024 after allegations he made racist comments to Napoli’s Juan Jesus during a Serie A match earlier that month.

A Serie A sports judge dismissed the case, citing a lack of evidence, as Acerbi escaped punishment – a decision furious Napoli labelled “astonishing”. 

BARCA DRAMA

Acerbi hit the headlines for all the right reasons, though, with his goal against Barcelona – four months on from marrying Claudia Scarpari, the mum of his two daughters.

Inzaghi deployed him in the Harry Maguire role – throwing the big centre-back up front in the desperate hunt for a goal.

And just like the Manchester United man against Lyon, Acerbi came up trumps.

Incredibly, that was his very first career goal in European football in his 66th appearance across the Champions League and Europa League. 

To make the finish even more impressive and remarkable, the left-footed 6ft 4ins unit scored with his right foot. 

So it was no wonder he ripped his famous black-and-blue shirt and then his underlayer off in sheer unbridled delirious delight to reveal his tattooed torso.

Acerbi’s many inkings will tell their own stories.

But the image of the seasoned and battle-scarred pensioner unsure how to celebrate his magic moment other than jumping gleefully on to his knees punctuates a truly turbulent tale of football with the most emphatic of exclamation marks.

Now can he write one more chapter in his rollercoaster novel at the Allianz Arena?

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The Oklahoma City Thunder “have a lot more work to do” after reaching their first NBA Finals since 2012 with a win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, says Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The NBA’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) scored 34 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in the 124-94 victory as the Thunder won the best-of-seven Western Conference finals series 4-1.

The Thunder remain on course for a first NBA title, having been beaten by the Miami Heat in 2012.

“This is a step in the right direction but we have a lot more work to do to get to our ultimate goal, so let’s buckle up and get ready,” said Gilgeous-Alexander.

“That’s all that I’m focused on. This isn’t the end of our road.”

The Thunder will host game one of the Finals next Thursday, when they face the winners of the Eastern Conference finals between the Indiana Pacers and the New York Knicks for the NBA title. Indiana lead the series 3-1 with game five on Thursday.

Gilgeous-Alexander joins Steph Curry, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant as the only players in the past 20 years to reach the Finals in the same year as winning the MVP.

The 26-year-old Canadian, also named Western Conference MVP on Wednesday, is on course to become the first scoring champion since Shaquille O’Neal in 2000 to win an NBA title in the same season.

Chet Holmgren added 22 points while Jalen Williams also scored 19 for the Thunder, who are the youngest team in the NBA Finals since the Portland Trail Blazers in 1977, with an average age of 25.6 years.

Gilgeous-Alexander added: “These guys really make me feel like I’m a kid playing AAU basketball, like I’m 15 years old again.

“It’s just fun. That’s what makes us really good. We have so much fun being out there together.”

Meanwhile, the Timberwolves saw their season end in the conference finals for the second year running, having lost to the Dallas Mavericks last year.

“They dominated the game from the tip,” said Anthony Edwards, who scored 19 points for the Timberwolves, who were led by Julius Randle with 24 points.

“I tip my hat to those guys. They came ready.”

By Tina Teng

Published on
29/05/2025 – 7:25 GMT+2

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Nvidia reported first-quarter earnings for fiscal year 2026 that exceeded market expectations and provided an upbeat outlook for the current quarter. This comes despite an estimated $8 billion (€7.1 billion) loss due to US chip export restrictions affecting sales to China.

Nvidia’s share price jumped nearly 5% in after-hours trading, placing it just 8% below its all-time high in January. Year-to-date, the stock is set to return to a positive return amid the price surge. Nvidia is now the world’s biggest company, surpassing Microsoft and Apple in market capitalisation.

“Investors entered this quarter looking for signs that Nvidia could alleviate short-term concerns. What they received was a clear message that demand remains robust,” said Josh Gilbert, a market analyst at eToro Australia.

Upbeat earnings results

Sales revenue from Nvidia’s core business, data centres, increased by 73% year-on-year to $39.1 billion (€34.7 billion), reaching a new record. However, this represented a deceleration from 93% growth in the previous quarter. Despite the slower pace, the result aligned with market expectations, as some analysts had anticipated weaker figures due to regulatory headwinds.

Overall revenue rose 69% to $44.1 billion (€39.2 billion), while earnings per share came in at $0.96 (€0.85), both ahead of expectations. CEO Jensen Huang attributed the sustained growth to strong global demand for artificial intelligence (AI), particularly from major cloud service providers. Nvidia’s most advanced AI chip, Blackwell, “is now in full-scale production across system makers and cloud service providers,” said Huang.

“Global demand for Nvidia’s AI infrastructure is incredibly strong. AI inference token generation has surged tenfold in just one year, and as AI agents become mainstream, the demand for AI computing will accelerate. Countries around the world are recognising AI as essential infrastructure—just like electricity and the internet—and Nvidia stands at the centre of this profound transformation,” he added.

Impact of China-related restrictions

The company expects revenue of $45 billion (€40 billion), plus or minus 2%, for the current quarter. “This outlook reflects a loss in H20 revenue of approximately $8.0 billion due to the recent export control limitations,” it stated.

The US government required Nvidia to obtain export licences for its H20 GPUs destined for China during the first quarter. Although the H20 chips had previously been approved, the new rules led to $4.5 billion (€4 billion) in write-downs due to excess inventory. Without this, the company would have generated an additional $2.5 billion (€2.2 billion) in sales.

As a result, Nvidia’s gross margin for the first quarter stood at 61%. It would have been 71.3% had the charges not occurred. “The $50 billion China market is effectively closed to

the US industry,” Huang said. “As a result, we are taking a multibillion-dollar write-off on inventory that cannot be sold or repurposed.”

Nvidia expects a non-GAAP gross margin of 72.0%, plus or minus 50 basis points, for the current quarter. For context, the margin was 73.5% in the fourth quarter of 2024 and 79% during the same quarter of the previous fiscal year.

In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Huang noted that Nvidia is exploring alternatives to the H20 chip. However, the company must obtain approval from the US government for any such measures.

US factory and Middle East venture

Nvidia is among the tech giants supporting President Donald Trump’s ambitious AI initiatives in the United States, announced in January. The company also unveiled a partnership with Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN to build AI factories in the kingdom during a recent visit to the region that coincided with Trump’s trip. These developments were highlighted in the earnings report in the section for data centre.

“While sales in China are clouded by export restrictions, the Middle East looks set to become the new launchpad for Nvidia’s next phase of growth,” Gilbert added.

The Qalandars chase a record target of 202 against the Gladiators as Raza returns from Test duty to hit the winning runs.

All-rounder Sikandar Raza has written his name in Pakistan cricket folklore after hitting the match-winning six as the Lahore Qalandars beat the Quetta Gladiators by six wickets to win the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2025 final at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.

Raza, who was part of Zimbabwe’s Test team until Saturday afternoon, joined the Qalandars’ playing XI 10 minutes prior to the toss for the final on Sunday evening in Pakistan’s eastern metropolis.

The Pakistan-born off-break bowler and lower-middle-order batter took one wicket and scored 22 runs off seven balls as Lahore chased a target of 202 with one ball to spare.

Lahore’s run chase was largely built around Kusal Perera’s 62 runs, with support from top-order batters Mohammad Naeem and Abdullah Shafique, but it was Raza’s whirlwind journey from the United Kingdom to Pakistan and his subsequent role in hitting the winning runs that stole the show and Lahori hearts.

The 39-year-old recounted his last 24 hours by saying he had “dinner in Birmingham, breakfast in Dubai, lunch in Abu Dhabi and flew straight to Lahore for the PSL final”.

Raza bowled 25 overs in the Test on Friday and batted for 20-plus overs on Saturday before leaving for Pakistan.

“To have a victory like this, I just have no words,” he said after the match.

The hosts finished on 204-4 from 19.5 overs to lift their third PSL trophy in four years, making Shaheen Shah Afridi the only captain to win three PSL titles.

Earlier, Quetta posted a formidable total of 201-9 in their 20 overs as young batter Hasan Nawaz scored 76 runs off 43 balls and Faheem Ashraf cracked three sixes and two fours in an innings of 28 off eight balls.

Afridi was the pick of the Lahore bowlers, taking 3-24 in his four overs.

Perera was named player of the match for his instrumental innings that kept Lahore in the match until the last over.

Meanwhile, Nawaz was named player of the tournament for amassing 399 runs in the competition.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Kelly Inouye-Perez was thinking about one pitch.

Even with her team three outs from elimination, needing at least three runs to stay alive in Game 2 of the Columbia Super Regional, she was still just thinking about one pitch.

Superstar slugger Jordan Woolery found it, hitting a walk-off home run to give UCLA an improbable 5-4 victory that set up a winner-take-all Game 3 on Sunday at Beckham Field.

“You never want to put yourself in a position to have a game feel like it’s out of your reach,” Inouye-Perez said. “It’s not about three outs or the bottom of the seventh or what the score is. Give us one pitch and anything can happen. And I think that’s the brilliance of our sport. It’s not a timed sport, you have an opportunity if you have one pitch.”

Just getting to the point where one pitch could win the game seemed improbable for most of the day. South Carolina (44-16) took the lead in the first inning and never gave it up until Woolery’s swing, leading 4-1 heading to the bottom of the seventh with Jori Heard on the mound.

Pinch hitter Taylor Stephens worked a lead-off walk and came around to score on Kaitlyn Terry’s one-out triple. That line drive into the gap made it 4-2 and brought the tying run to the plate, but Heard followed it up by striking out Jessica Clements.

South Carolina was one out from its first trip to the Women’s College World Series since 1997, but Savannah Pola kept the game alive with an RBI single.

With Woolery coming to the plate in a one-run game, South Carolina made a pitching change. Sam Gress, who started the game and allowed one run in four innings, reentered the circle.

Woolery was 0 for 2 against Gress earlier in the game, but the pitching change was a blessing in disguise.

“I was just happy to have more time to take some breaths in between, honestly,” Woolery said. “I was happy to take a little timeout, catch my breath and get in the right head space. Both pitchers did a great job the last two days, so I have a lot of respect for both of them.”

One pitch later, she crushed her 23rd home run of the season, one with more importance than the first 22 combined. Down to its last breath, Woolery kept UCLA’s season alive.

“Coach always says the game comes back around,” Woolery said. “I’ve had a rough two days, so it was just trusting that was eventually going to come through. I just wanted to have my teammates’ backs today.”

Woolery’s heroics ended the game, but pitcher Taylor Tinsley made it possible. Tinsley threw a 137-pitch complete game with four runs allowed, but pitched out of a couple of key jams to keep the Bruins afloat. Tinsley stranded runners on the corners in the first inning, got out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth inning and held the deficit at 4-1 with two runners on base in the seventh.

The sixth-inning jam did feature one big break with a South Carolina base running blunder. Second baseman Karley Shelton grounded out to her counterpart Pola with the bases loaded, but thought the inning was over after Pola fired home to cut down the lead runner. In reality, there were only two outs, but Shelton trotted off the field like the inning was over. Once she hit the dugout, she was automatically out.

It was far from a conventional double play, but it was exactly what UCLA needed to stay within three runs.

“Credit to Taylor Tinsley,” Inouye-Perez said. “She has been just a leader, she has been tough, she has had success, she has had disappointment. But she has prepared for this moment and was so locked in.”

Still, it would have been a clutch performance in a losing effort if not for one final rally. The type of miracle comeback that will earn a place in UCLA’s steeped softball lore if the Bruins can come back to win tomorrow.

“One thing that I told the team was we were going to have an opportunity to get the last punch,” Inouye-Perez said. “And we have a thing. We believe in Bruin magic. And great things can happen when you come together and play as a team.”

Four runs to save the season, three of them down to the final out. Magic might be the only explanation.

“The Bruin magic is literally just the belief that we will win this game,” she continued. “That’s something that has been a big part of the history of this part of this program. We’ve seen it, we have experience in it. But to see this team do it in this big moment is a big part of why you come to UCLA.”

Game 3 of the series is scheduled for Sunday, with the start time and broadcast information to be revealed later Saturday night.

NEW YORK — The upcoming month was already going to be tough for the Dodgers.

A rainy Friday night in Queens made it that much tougher.

In the fourth game of a 29-game stretch against playoff-contending teams, the Dodgers beat the New York Mets in a marathon contest at Citi Field, overcoming a three-run ninth-inning blown save from closer Tanner Scott by prevailing 7-5 in the 13th inning.

But, their already shorthanded pitching staff endured more unexpected obstacles in the process. A one-hour, 38-minute rain delay in the top of the third limited starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw to just two innings. A seemingly never-ending game forced their overworked bullpen to combine for 11 more innings in which every reliever was used except one.

Navigating this difficult portion of the schedule — which began in earnest with a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks this week — will be a test for a Dodgers pitching staff missing three of its five opening-day rotation members and many other important arms in the bullpen.

Because of that, manager Dave Roberts has emphasized in recent days the need to push his starters to take down as many innings as possible.

On Friday, Kershaw seemed to be on his way to a decent start, pitching two scoreless innings in which his only baserunner reached via a walk that was quickly erased by a double play.

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw delivers in the second inning Friday against the Mets.

(Pamela Smith / Associated Press)

But then, with the Dodgers mounting a rally in the top of the third, the New York skies opened up for a late May downpour. For the next 98 minutes, fans scattered for shelter and watched the Knicks’ playoff game on the stadium scoreboard. Back in the visiting clubhouse, Roberts watched the clock tick and tick and tick, eventually to the point where keeping Kershaw in was no longer a viable option.

By the end of the night, that was the least of the Dodgers’ problems.

Despite holding a 5-2 lead after getting three innings of two-run ball from Matt Sauer, and three scoreless innings from Ben Casparius, Scott couldn’t get the game across the finish line.

Starling Marte led with a single. Pete Alonso drew a one-out walk. Jeff McNeil got them both home on a triple hit just high enough to evade a leaping Freddie Freeman at first base. Tyrone Taylor then completed Scott’s fourth blown save in 14 opportunities with an RBI single to left.

Somehow, the Dodgers (32-19) still managed to prevail.

Alex Vesia got the game to extras, stranding two runners aboard to end the ninth. Both teams then traded wasted opportunities from there, failing to score their automatic runners in the 10th (when the Dodgers had the bases loaded with no outs), the 11th (when Anthony Banda and Luis García combined to escape a bases-loaded threat) and the 12th (when the Dodgers turned an inning-ending double play while employing a five-man infield).

Finally, Teoscar Hernández put the Dodgers back in front in the 13th, hitting a leadoff RBI double before scoring on Andy Pages’ sacrifice fly.

García closed it out in the bottom half of the inning, completing a 2 ⅓ scoreless inning appearance just minutes shy of 1 a.m. local time.

It was a hard-fought win, but one that could come with future consequences for a pitching staff that was already running on fumes.

Grounds crew members cover the field during a rain delay at Citi Field on Friday night.

(Pamela Smith / Associated Press)

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

George Simion rejected the exit poll soon after it was released, claiming he was ahead in the vote.

Centrist Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan, who has pledged to clamp down on corruption and is staunchly pro-EU and NATO, is on course to win presidential elections in Romania.

Exit polls showed Dan ahead with 54.9 percent. His rival, hard-right nationalist George Simion, was on 45.1 percent.

Simion rejected the exit poll soon after it was released, claiming on Sunday his count estimates have him at 400,000 votes more than Dan.

Dan had campaigned on a pledge to fight rampant corruption and to keep Romania firmly within the European mainstream.

The rerun was held months after the cancellation of the previous election plunged Romania into its worst political crisis in decades.

Turnout was significantly higher in Sunday’s runoff and is expected to play a decisive role in the outcome.

Official results are expected to come in later on Sunday.

Simion appeared alongside Georgescu at a Bucharest polling station on Sunday and told reporters that he voted against the “humiliations to which our sisters and brothers have been subjected”.

“We voted against abuses and against poverty,” he said. “I voted for our future to be decided only by Romanians, for Romanians and Romania. So help us God!”

More to come…