Sports digest: Lionel Messi nets two goals in Barcelona rout

Lionel Messi scored his first two goals after a two-month injury layoff, and Luis Suarez netted a brace in a 6-1 rout of Roma on Tuesday as host Barcelona advanced to the Champions League knockout rounds for a 12th consecutive season. 

Suarez got Barcelona rolling at Camp Nou in the 15th minute. Three minutes later Messi scored his first goal in his second appearance since returning from a left-knee injury.

With Roma in disarray, Messi netted the hosts' fifth after Suarez and Gerard Pique scored. Adriano capped the demolition before Edin Dzeko got Roma's consolation.

Messi showed no rust from his time on the sideline recovering from a ligament he tore on Sept. 26. On Saturday, he played a little more than half an hour as a second-half substitute in Barcelona's memorable 4-0 win at Real Madrid, looking threatening as ever despite not scoring. Frighteningly enough for opponents, Barcelona's all-time leading scorer said despite his strong return, he has yet to recover his peak form. "It's tough to get back up to full speed," said Messi.

Elsewhere in Champions League, Bayern routed second-placed Olympiakos 4-0, despite playing almost 40 minutes with 10 men, to ensure it will finish top of Group F, while Chelsea won by the same scorline at 10-man Maccabi Tel Aviv in Group G.

Arsenal beat Dinamo Zagreb 3-0 to keep alive its chances of progressing. Arsenal needs to beat Olympiakos in its final group match. Zenit St. Petersburg secured top spot in Group H with a 2-0 win over Valencia.

The Red Bulls' Jesse Marsch has been voted Major League Soccer's Coach of the Year, the first to earn the honor in the two-decade history of the New York team. The Red Bulls went a league-best 18-10-6 in Marsch's first season after replacing Mike Petke.

The Chicago Fire have hired Serbian Veljko Paunovic as coach to replace the fired Frank Yallop.

The Jacksonville Armada have hired former national team goalkeeper Tony Meola as coach and technical director of the North American Soccer League club.

Baseball

Colorado Rockies shortstop Jose Reyes is pleading not guilty to allegations of abusing his wife at a Hawaii resort. Maui police arrested Reyes after an argument Oct. 31 with his wife that allegedly turned physical at the Four Seasons Resort. Reyes didn't attend his arraignment Tuesday on Maui. According to court records, defense attorney David Sereno entered the not guilty plea on Reyes' behalf to a charge of abuse of a family or household member. 

Bud Black has rejoined the Los Angeles Angels as a special assistant to the general manager. Former A's infielder Mike Gallego, who spent the past seven seasons as Oakland's third base coach, was named the Angels director of baseball development. 

The Miami Marlins have fired Tommy Hutton, their TV analyst for 19 years. The team said it decided to go in a different direction and didn't elaborate on its decision.

Read more...

Football: Lionel Messi wins record fifth Ballon d'Or

FC Barcelona and Argentina's forward Lionel Messi (R) holds his trophy as he shakes hands with FC Barcelona and Brazil’s forward Neymar after receiving the 2015 FIFA Ballon d’Or award for player of the year during the 2015 FIFA Ballon d'Or award ceremony at the Kongresshaus in Zurich on January 11, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI)

(AFP) - Barcelona star Lionel Messi won a record fifth FIFA Ballon d'Or award for the world's best player at a ceremony in Zurich on Monday.

The Argentine dethroned three-time winner Cristiano Ronaldo in adding to his four consecutive awards from 2009 to 2012.

Brazil star Neymar, who also plays for Barca, came third in the vote by national team coaches and captains, and journalists.

"It's a very special moment to come back, to get a Ballon d'Or again after the two years in which Cristiano Ronaldo won each time," said the 28-year-old Messi.

"It is incredible that it's my fifth. This Ballon d'Or means more than I could have ever dreamed of as a child."

Messi, who voted for his Barca team-mate Luis Suarez, had 41 percent of the vote, Ronaldo getting 28 percent and Neymar 8.0 percent.

His victory continued the duopoly of the award he enjoys with Ronaldo that has lasted since Brazilian Kaka claimed top honours in 2007.

"We have always had a good relationship," said Messi about his rivalry with Ronaldo.

"We share a profession, we have our day-to-day battles because we are playing for different teams, but it is more in the press that they compare us for one reason or another.

"On our part, there has always been admiration and respect."

Messi was the star player as Barcelona won the treble of Champions League, La Liga and Spanish Cup last season, before also adding the Club World Cup last month.

Although he became the first ever player to win the award five times, Messi had said earlier that he would swap all those individual accolades for a World Cup success.

"Team awards are more important than individual ones," he said, before adding that the World Cup "is every player's objective, it's really the pinnacle".

Messi and his Argentina teammates came close to winning the World Cup in Brazil in 2014 but were beaten 1-0 by Germany in the final.

His Barcelona boss Luis Enrique won the coach of the year award while Jill Ellis took the women's trophy.

She had guided the US to women's World Cup glory in Canada last summer, beating Japan 5-2 in the final.

Carli Lloyd scored a hat-trick in that match and that was enough to help her land the FIFA women's player of the year gong.

She had also previously scored the winning goals for the US in the Olympic Games finals of 2008 and 2012.

Enrique edged out Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola and Chile coach Jorge Sampaoli.

Brazilian Wendell Lira won the Puskas award for goal of the year for his spectacular overhead bicycle kick for Goianesia in a regional league match, edging out Messi's own mazy dribble against Athletic Bilbao in last season's Copa del Rey final.

Barca and Real dominated the team of the year as well with four players each, including Messi, Neymar and Ronaldo.

The only players from outside the two Spanish superpowers were Bayern Munich's Germany international goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, Brazilian centre-back Thiago Silva, who plays for Paris Saint-Germain, and Juventus's France midfielder Paul Pogba.

Read more...