McIlroy and Burns set early pace – The Masters

Rory McIlroy made a superb start to the defence of his Masters title as he sits tied for the lead after an opening round 67 at Augusta. McIlroy, seeking to become the first player to win back-to-back Masters since Tiger Woods in 2002, registered six birdies and one dropped stroke to post a five-under-par tally, his round leaving him joint-leader alongside Sam Burns of the United States. Shane Lowry also made a fine start to his Masters tilt, the 2019 Open champion lying tied for sixth on two under.

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Gianpiero Lambiase to leave Red Bull for McLaren

Leading Red Bull engineer Gianpiero Lambiase has agreed to join McLaren from 2028. The team said the Briton, who is most well known for being Max Verstappen’s race engineer, will become McLaren’s chief racing officer, reporting into team principal Andrea Stella. A statement said: “The role of the chief racing officer already exists within the team’s structure with overall leadership of the race team.

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Advantage Atleti as 10 man Barca left on the brink

Atletico Madrid took a firm grip on their Champions League ⁠quarter-final as goals from Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth earned a 2-0 first-leg victory over 10-man Barcelona at the Camp Nou. Barcelona dominated proceedings, but Atletico’s rock-solid defence combined ‌with swift ⁠counter-attacks paid off after Pau Cubarsi was sent off for hauling down Giuliano Simeone in the 42nd minute as the last man.

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PSG dominate Liverpool to take control of tie

Liverpool’s Champions League hopes are hanging in the balance after a demoralising defeat by reigning European champions Paris St-Germain – their 16th loss of the season. Desire Doue’s deflected strike looped over the head of Giorgi Mamardashvili to give the Ligue 1 leaders the lead, before Khvicha Kvaratskhelia doubled their advantage with a moment of brilliance.

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Havertz strikes late for Arsenal in Lisbon

Kai Havertz scored a stoppage-time winner to fire Arsenal to a crucial 1-0 victory against Sporting Lisbon in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final in Lisbon. The last-eight rubber looked to be heading for a goalless draw before substitute Havertz latched on to Gabriel Martinelli’s ball to deliver a fine finish in the first minute of added time to put Arsenal in control of the contest ahead of next week’s return match at the Emirates.

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