Kiradech traded five birdies against two bogeys at Club de Golf Chapultepec to trail first round leader Rory McIlroy, who enjoyed a blistering 63 featuring an eagle, seven birdies and a bogey.

China’s Haotong Li dropped two late bogeys to settle for a 69, leaving him in T11, while Shubhankar Sharma of India, who finished T9 here last year after holding the second and third round lead, endured a rollercoaster day with four birdies against three bogeys for T19.

After missing the cut in three of his last four tournaments, Kiradech enjoyed a solid start with birdies on one, two, six and 11. He endured two three-putt bogeys on 12 and 13 but regained his composure by rolling in a 15-footer on 17 to end the round in the top-10 of the leaderboard.

“It’s good to get off to a good start. I hit it quite nicely early on to make those early birdies and kept the ball pretty much in play for most of the round. Made some mistakes to bogey 12 and 13 but I managed to finish strongly by holing a long putt on 17. I hope to build on this and keep playing well as I enjoy playing on this golf course,” said Kiradech, who finished T5 here last year and is playing in his first full season on the PGA TOUR.

Li began his campaign in style, chipping in for eagle on the drivable par-4 opening hole before picking up more gains with a 16-foot birdie on six and another birdie on 15. The Chinese star gave a shot back on 16 after missing the green and then three putted on 17 to drop down the leaderboard.

“It’s pretty good. I didn’t hole many putts but the first 15 holes were really solid. And 16 and 17, it was just a wrong club and I kind of blocked it into the wind. Except for that, it’s a solid round,” said the 23-year-old, who is currently third on the International Team standings for the Presidents Cup.

Li is hoping a solid showing in Mexico City will enable him to follow in Kiradech’s footsteps and earn his card on the PGA TOUR. “I don’t want to waste any chance, any opportunity to get my PGA TOUR status. I just want to play solid every day and prepare for the new stage,” he said.

Close range birdies on the 15^th and 18^th holes saw the 22-year-old Sharma end the day in red figures as he attempts to replicate last year’s title challenge which propelled him onto the global stage.

Dustin Johnson sits one shot back from McIlroy while last year’s runner-up Justin Thomas and Matt Kuchar are joint third. Tiger Woods, making his debut in the event, battled to a level par 71 for T25 while defending champion Phil Mickelson had a day to forget with an uncharacteristic 79.

After falling 1-0 in Belarus, Arsenal were level on aggregate after just three minutes when Zakhar Volkov sliced Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s low cross past Denis Scherbitski in his own goal.

Unai Emery’s side deservedly went through thanks to two thumping headers from Shkodran Mustafi and Sokratis either side of the break which put them into Friday’s draw.

“We wanted this result but also we wanted to play for our supporters here. We did our best to come back (in the tie) and the team worked very well,” Emery told BT Sport.

Ahead 2-1 from the first leg in Sweden, Chelsea had to wait until 10 minutes after the break for the first sign of excitement, Olivier Giroud tapping in the decisive goal of a humdrum encounter at Stamford Bridge.

Ross Barkley made sure of the win with a super free-kick in the 74th minute, just after Malmo’s Rasmus Bengtsson was sent off for his second bookable offence, before 18-year-old Callum Hudson-Odoi made the most of a rare start by crashing home the third.

“The boys really played well today. We worked hard throughout the game,” said highly-rated Hudson Odoi, a Bayern Munich target in January.

“The goal that came at the end was definitely a bonus for the way that we played.”

Carlo Ancelotti’s Napoli breezed to a 2-0 win over FC Zurich that saw them win 5-1 on aggregate, while Inter Milan went through 5-0 after sweeping four goals past Rapid Vienna without reply at the San Siro.

– Rennes make history –

French side Rennes are into the last 16 of a major European tournament for the first time after winning possibly the most entertaining tie of the round 6-4 on aggregate following a barnstorming 3-1 win at Real Betis.

Goals from Ramy Bensebaini and Adrien Hunou fired Rennes into a two-goal lead within the opening half-hour but the tie was put back in the balance when Giovani Lo Celso pulled one back four minutes before half-time.

With Betis pushing to equalise and go through on away goals, M’Baye Niang finished off an injury time break to see the mid-table Ligue 1 side through.

RB Salzburg, Dinamo Zagreb and Zenit Saint Petersburg all overturned first-leg deficits, with Austrians Salzburg hammering Club Brugge 4-0 to go through 5-2 and Croatian champions Dinamo 4-2 winners on aggregate after a storming 3-0 victory over Viktoria Plzen.

Zenit overcame Fenerbahce 3-1 in Russia, Magomed Ozdoev and Sardar Azmoun giving the hosts an aggregate lead before Mehmet Topal put the Turks ahead on away goals just before the break.

However, on his home debut for Zenit, Iranian international Azmoun struck again 14 minutes from the end to see Sergei Semak’s side through.

Pablo Fornals snuck Villarreal past Sporting Lisbon with a fine curling strike that gave the La Liga side a 1-1 draw on the night and a 2-1 win overall, while Benfica eased past Galatasaray 2-1 after a goalless draw in Portugal.

Krasnodar shocked Bundesliga outfit Bayer Leverkusen with a 1-1 draw that saw them through on away goals.

Eintracht Frankfurt saved Germany’s blushes by sweeping past Shakhtar Donetsk with a pulsating 4-1 win that gave them side a 6-3 aggregate victory.

Scotland’s participation in Europe ended after 10-man Celtic fell 1-0 at Valencia, already 2-0 up from the first leg in Glasgow and winners in Spain thanks to Kevin Gameiro’s 70th-minute strike.

The five-time LPGA tour winner sank nine birdies in the last 14 holes to grab a two-shot lead at the Siam Country Club Pattaya Old Course.

In doing so, she also broke the previous opening-day low score of 65 set by American Nicole Castrale and Heather Young when the event was first held in 2006, at the Amata Spring Country Club, Chon Buri.

“I felt really great. I didn’t miss any fairways and missed just two greens,” said the 32-year-old winner of the season-opening Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions in Florida last month.

“I changed my swing a little bit and I changed my putting style. I made a lot of putts from there, so, yeah, I got a lot of confidence,” added the 2009 U.S. Women’s Open champion, who is playing just her second tournament of the season after skipping two in Australia recently.

Two shots behind are three players: world No 7 Minjee Lee of Australia, No 17 Danielle Kang of the US and No 67 Jenny Shin of South Korea.

Shin, whose only LPGA crown was the 2016 Volunteers of America, highlighted her round with five successive birdies from the fourth to the eighth. She then gave one stroke back before recovering to sink three more birdies on the way home.

“It was a great start. I hit a shot pretty close, and then that was it. I rolled a few putts here and there, and that got me going,” said the 26-year-old, who is playing her first event of the year.

Lee, 22, from Perth, Western Australia, was the only one of the trio in joint second not to blemish her scorecard, which featured one eagle and five birdies.

Minjee Lee

“It was a bogey-free day. I started with six pars, which was a little bit slow, before I finished with three birdies on the last three holes of the front nine,” said the winner of four LPGA titles. “Then I got a little bit better momentum going into the back nine.”

A stroke behind on 66 are American Jennifer Song and Lizette Salas, Canadian Brooke Henderson and Australian Katherine Kirk.

The best Thai scorer of the day was Ariya Jutanugarn, whose roller-coaster 68 left her five shots off the pace.

The 2013 runner-up hit six birdies and one eagle (on the fifth hole) against two bogeys and a double-bogey at the 17th.

Ariya Jutanugarn 

“I was a bit under pressure at the beginning but then things started getting better said the world No 1, who was followed by around 200 fans, an unusually high number for the first day of a tournament in Thailand.

“I was up and down the whole day. I putted so well but still made some mistakes.

“To me this is one of the biggest tournaments. It’s always special to me to play at home with so many fans coming to show their support.”

Her sister Moriya, who finished tied for second last year, shot a 69 and amateur Atthaya Thitikul is a further stroke behind after a 70.

The darling of the crowds, China’s Muni He, hit a 71 in her second appearance at the tournament.

This time, however. she returns with one title under her belt, from the secondary Symetra Tour last year.

Muni He

“I wanted to come back to Thailand again this year to see how much I’ve improved. I’ve been working really, really hard and I know my game has improved a little bit,” said the 19-year-old.

Another local contender, Thidapa Suwannapura, signed off with a par-72, despite her first ever tournament hole-in-one on the par 3 third.

“The people who are walking with me today, they were like, ‘Go, keep going, keep rolling, keep going!’  I was just looking at it and the ball disappeared. I’m like, ‘Ahhh, okay,’ that’s the first time I made a hole-in-one in a tournament, even a professional tournament. That was cool,” said Thidapa.

Thidapa Suwannapura 

“We will not go far in this competition unless we improve,” said City manager Guardiola.

“At the end, the quality of (Leroy) Sane and (Raheem) Sterling made the difference.

“The result is incredibly good, but we gave the first two penalties away and the red card, so we are not ready to fight for the Champions League.”

City were in real trouble at 2-1 down with 22 minutes left when Nicolas Otamendi was sent off before goals by Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling in the last five minutes swung the last 16 tie back in their favour.

Schalke led at the break as the video assistant referee (VAR) twice intervened to award penalties, both converted by Nabil Bentaleb, cancelling out Sergio Aguero’s opener in Gelsenkirchen.

Sane, who came on for the last 12 minutes, drilled home a stunning free-kick to equalise and was delighted to score against his old club having joined City from Schalke in 2016.

“I wanted to shoot from that position as I have already scored from there and the goal gave us confidence, which set us up to win,” said the Germany international.

“We did not get start well, but I’m glad we won and getting three goals away is good.”

City still have some work to do in the return leg on March 12 with Fernandinho, who was booked when conceding the second spot-kick, and Otamendi both suspended.

– Guardiola backs VAR –

Despite a lengthy delay of over three minutes, after a technical error meant the match referee could not check Otamendi’s handball for the first Schalke penalty, Guardiola said he is a fan of VAR.

“The VAR needs time, they will improve, the screen was broken, next time they will be better,” said Guardiola.

“I support the technology, because they (referees) need the help.”

Guardiola’s main gripe with his side’s heroic display was that they leaked two goals despite Schalke only having two shots on target over 90 minutes.

“They hardly shot a goal on target and they got two goals, so we have some work to do,” said the Spaniard.

“To go away and score three goals, I am delighted, but it’s not enough at this level.

“We gave them the opportunities to be in the game and we have to improve on that.”

Overall, the City boss took more positives than negatives from the last-gasp win.

“Maybe it will help us, the result is incredible – if you had told me we would score three goals away, I would have signed for that straight away,” said Guardiola.

“I’m delighted, we showed personality – but we gave them options to be in the game.”

After leading the Premier League leaders and being on the verge of a famous European victory, Schalke coach Domenico Tedesco could barely hide his frustration.

“A 3-2 (loss) is definitely disappointing,” said Tedesco, whose Schalke side sit just above the Bundesliga relegation places.

“It is important we learn from this.

“We made two goals, even if they were penalties.

“We just need to be cleverer in certain situations.”

In attendance was ONE Atomweight Kickboxing World Champion Stamp Fairtex of Thailand and her opponent Janet Todd of the United States, as well as ONE Championship athletes Amir Khan, Ariel Sexton, former ONE Strawweight World Champion Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke, and Jeremy Miado.

The athletes are set to compete at ONE: CALL TO GREATNESS, which takes place this Friday, 22 February at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. In the main event, Stamp Fairtex faces Janet Todd for the inaugural ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Championship. In the co-main event, Singapore’s Amir Khan takes on Ariel “Tarzan” Sexton of Costa Rica in the quarter-finals of the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix.

Stamp Fairtex, ONE Atomweight Kickboxing World Champion, stated: “This is the most important fight for me right now. I represent Thailand, where Muay Thai originated. I don’t plan on disappointing my fans back home. My opponent is strong and has a lot of power, but I have the warrior heart of Thailand inside of me. I will represent my culture and I vow to win the fight this Friday night.”

Janet Todd, ONE World Title contender, stated: “I always want to challenge myself everytime I go into a fight. The World Title is so important to me. This is my chance to become a World Champion. Fans can expect to see my hands, knees, elbows, and everything good that comes with a Muay Thai fight. I’m going to bring my best this Friday night and I can’t wait to put on a show for everybody.”

Amir Khan, ONE Athlete, stated: “I am going to focus on what I do best, which is to finish people. I am young and aggressive, and I always go for the finish. It is an honor to be part of the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix. Ariel Sexton is a worthy opponent and I am not taking him lightly. Fans should stay glued to the screen when we climb up the ring because I’m sure this bout is not going the distance.”

Ariel Sexton, ONE Athlete, stated: “Thank you all for having me here today. It is a pleasure to showcase my skills in front of you all. Being a part of this ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix is an honor, especially competing amongst the world’s best. I vow to give the best performance of my career and do my best to win the tournament.”

Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke, ONE Athlete, stated: “Competing in Singapore again, I am looking forward to getting the victory. I have trained very hard for this match and I’m prepared to put on a show. Jeremy Miado is a tough warrior and I can’t underestimate him. I will give a better performance in this rematch and make my fans in Singapore and Thailand proud.”

Jeremy Miado, ONE Athlete, stated: “I know we are both very well-prepared for this fight. So I invite everyone to come and watch us perform. We’ll do our very best. It’s going to be an explosive contest and I expect to emerge the victor once again. I have the greatest respect for Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke, but I am coming for the win and I am confident I can do it again in this rematch.”

Marini’s time is significantly faster than last year’s pole lap and the Italian was the first of eleven riders who matched or bettered that 2018 1:41.925, with Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) in P11 setting exactly the same laptime as Lorenzo Baldassarri did to take that pole.

It wasn’t just the speed that was impressive after Wednesday’s action ended, though – the incredibly tight timesheets make for good reading ahead of the season. Behind Marini leading the way, Iker Lecuona was second fastest on the American Racing KTM machine, just 0.081 in arrears, with Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) completing the top three and only a further 0.059 back. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) followed and was just under a tenth slower, with the top five completed by Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) by just 0.002 seconds.

Jorge Navarro (+Ego Speed Up) in sixth is the first to break the Kalex and KTM stronghold on the top echelons, putting his Speed Up 0.146 off the top five. Marcel Schrötter (Dynavolt Intact GP) was next up in seventh, ahead of Lorenzo Baldassarri (FlexBox HP 40) by just 0.010, with Moto2™ returner Tom Lüthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) acclimatising well to the season in P9. Australian Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) completed the top ten. And then came the rookies…

Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) impressed in P11 as he gets back on a Moto2™ machine after his struggles with injury over winter, the fastest newcomer to the class, with fellow rookie Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) 0.041 in arrears. Vierge completed the eleven men faster than the 2018 pole position, with Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) and Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) completing the top 15.

Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) impressed to set a 1:42.191 – the fastest NTS – as he returns from injury, and Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) was the fastest of the MV Agustas, putting in a 1:42.510.

Joe Roberts (American Racing KTM) suffered a crash, as did Lowes, Bendsneyder, British rookie Jake Dixon (Angel Nieto Team) and Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3).

In Moto3™, Tony Arbolino (Snipers Team) went quickest but he had some close company at the top as rookie Sergio Garcia (Estrella Galicia 0,0) stormed to second, 0.045 off P1, and Gabriel Rodrigo (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) completed a top three covered by just 0.094.

Next up was Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) to make it four Hondas in the top four, with Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) the fastest KTM machine as he locked out the top five. Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) continued the Honda domination of the top ten in sixth, just ahead of returning competitor Romano Fenati (Snipers Team). Rookie Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia), despite a crash, and sophomore Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0) were P8 and P9 respectively, also on Hondas, with reigning FIM CEV Repsol Moto3™ Junior World Champion Raul Fernandez (Angel Nieto Team) the second KTM in a top ten he completed.

Veteran Czech rider Jakub Kornfeil (Redox PrüstelGP) was P11, with John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing), Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team), Niccolo Antonelli (SIC58 Squadra Corse) and Albert Arenas (Angel Nieto Team) rounding out the fastest fifteen.

Action continues tomorrow at Jerez, keep up to date with everything from reports to live timing on motogp.com!

Currently ranked 45^th in the world, Kiradech has struggled to get his game out of first gear in 2019 following an extended year-end break but a return to the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship, which starts on Thursday, could be the ideal stage to get his game to click.

The first Thai to hold a PGA TOUR card, the 29-year-old finished an impressive T5 at Club de Golf Chapultepec in Mexico City last year, which was one of his three top-five finishes registered in the World Golf Championships.

“Coming back to a place where I’ve played well before, it helps a bit. But everything is on me. I need to feel comfortable with my swing as I like moving the ball around. I’ve not spent enough of time on the golf course following my six-week break and I’m not playing great golf now. If you play against the best players in the world, play on the strongest tour on earth, when you don’t swing it well these are the results that you get,” said Kiradech.

After missing his first cut of the year in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on the European Tour, the burly Kiradech began his quest on the PGA TOUR at the Farmers Insurance Open but endured an abbreviated week. He finished T33 in the Waste Management Phoenix Open and then missed the weekend rounds at the Genesis Open by one after bogeying three of his last four holes. He has not experienced such a lean run since the middle of 2017.

“I took a lot of time off. I think I need just one good week to get back on the road … there’s a lot of golf left. Maybe do something this week,” said Kiradech.

To overcome his woes, he has spent additional hours on the practice range to get the rust off his game under the watchful eyes of swing coach Mike Walker, who was with him in Los Angeles. Kiradech is optimistic his fortunes can turn around in Mexico.

“I’ve been working harder over the last few weeks. I saw my coach which was good as I need to know if the swing is working or not. I need to get more time with my golf clubs and I think it won’t be long before I start playing good. I need to be patient,” said Kiradech, the 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion.

He played nine holes in practice at Chapultepec on Tuesday, saying the course, which is some 7,600 feet above sea level, will once again provide a tricky test. “It’s in fantastic shape, the greens are a bit harder this year as the weather has been dry. I was hitting it good during practice, so I’m looking forward to the tournament,” he said.

Kiradech also hopes to revive his challenge for a place in the International Team to face the United States in the Presidents Cup at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia later in December.

The Thai was amongst a group of prospective members who gathered for an International Team meeting with Captain Ernie Els last week and played the first two rounds with Els, whom he had hoped to impress.

“I don’t think I’m good enough to be on the team right now,” conceded Kiradech, who is currently 31^st on team standings where the top-8 will earn automatic qualification.

“Playing with Ernie, I wanted to show him some good golf but I made mistakes. I’ll keep trying to move up the ranking. The Presidents Cup is big event and I’m still aiming for a PGA TOUR win this season. If that can happen, it will take care of the Presidents Cup.”

So Yeon Ryu, Ariya Jutanugarn, Sung Hyun Park and Minjee Lee 

Over the past 13 years, no Thai has ever lifted the trophy in their home LPGA event, the best finishers being Ariya Jutanugarn and her sister Moriya, who were runners-up in 2013 and last year respectively.

All 12 LPGA victories by Thais – 10 by Ariya and one each by Moriya and Thidapa Suwannapura – occurred offshore, raising suspicion that they feel less pressured away from home.

They however denied that theory, saying several factors played significant roles in whether they achieved tournament success.

“We have to compete every week and each week is different,” said Moriya, who won her maiden title, the LA Open, last April.

“They are so many elements coming together for a player to win each week,” added Moriya, who hit 21 under-par last year to be tied for second with Lexi Thompson of the US.

Moriya Jutanugarn 

“The weather conditions and the courses change every week. We are all determined to play well here and everywhere else. And last year we had several Thais finishing in the top 10 in this tournament.

In fact three local contestants made the top 10 in 2018 which was the best by Thais to date. Ariya signed off at tied fifth while Pornanong Phatlum also made her first top 10 finish in the event at tied seventh.

Pornanong Phatlum 

“We enjoy it when a huge number of crowd showed up for support. We have only one LPGA event a year in Thailand while so many LPGA events take place elsewhere. It’s not a surprise we have better results there,” said the 29-year-old Pornanong, who has yet to win an LPGA title, despite joining the tour before other Thais. She also finished runner-up in the British Open last year.

Two-time major champion Ariya (2016 British Open and 2018 U.S. Women’s Open) echoed Pornanong’s plea for home support and pointed out that a huge turnout inspired more motivation rather than pressure.

“I always want to play at home because there are so many people come for support.  Besides, it’s a good opportunity to eat Thai food as well as I rarely spend time here,” said Ariya, a standout contender this week.

The greens will, as usualy, provide a daunting challenge for local playerss in the next four days and all agree that putting will play a big role.

“The course set up pretty tougher this year. The greens are firm and fast. It will be quite a challenge out there,” said Ariya, who believed several Thais, eight in the field, will make an impact this week.

“We have a lot of Thais in the field this year and all of them are good players. I believe several will make the top 10.”

Ariya tees up this morning alongside 2016 champion Thompson and Jin Young Ko of South Korea.

Pornanong also agreed that the greens, although in perfect condition, would be hard to get the better of. “The greens are fast. Even a tap of the ball could make it roll down the slope. Putting wise, you need to quickly get used to them,” she said.

Moriya, who posted one top-five and one top-15 finish in the two previous home LPGA events, said: “I think the winning score won’t be as low as last year. You have to work harder on your game plan this year,” she said.