Defending world champion Sebastien Loeb won his seventh successive Rally of Argentina on Sunday to extend his lead in his hunt for a ninth drivers' title.

The French driver led home a Citroen 1-2 with teammate Mikko Hirvonen taking the runner-up spot, 15 seconds behind. Ford's Mads Ostberg took third.

Tottenham Hotspur revived their bid for Champions League football by returning to the top four of the Premier League with a 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Blackburn Rovers on Sunday.

Rafael van der Vaart struck in the 22nd minute before Kyle Walker's brilliant free-kick 15 minutes from time sealed Tottenham's victory at White Hart Lane as Harry Redknapp's men won for just the second time in 10 league games.

Juventus remained on course for their first Serie A crown in nine seasons after crushing relegation-threatened Novara 4-0 on Sunday as AC Milan stayed three points adrift with a 4-1 win at Siena.

A brace from Mirko Vucinic and goals from Marco Borriello and Arturo Vidal helped unbeaten Juventus record their eighth success in a row to reach 77 points with three matches left.

The defining plot twist of the most enthralling title race in years could be written on Monday as Manchester City attempt to seize control of their Premier League destiny against leaders Manchester United.

Three weeks ago, United already had one hand on a record 20th title after City's defeat at Arsenal left Sir Alex Ferguson's team a hefty eight points clear with only six games remaining.

The Los Angeles Lakers may not be the force they were in winning back-to-back NBA titles in 2009 and 2010, but star Kobe Bryant says it would be a mistake to under-rate their playoff chances.

"I expect to win it, absolutely," Bryant told an ESPN radio call-in show this week. "We've been shooting the ball extremely well, and our biggest key is our perimeter shooting, limiting our turnovers, and keeping the game at our pace. If we can do those things in the post-season, I like our chances."

Maria Sharapova needed more than three hours to complete a marathon three-set comeback against U.S. Open winner Sam Stosur to reach Saturday's semifinals at the Stuttgart WTA clay-court tournament.

With Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka, Petra Kvitova, and Agnieszka Radwanska all in Saturday's semifinals, this is the first time since Wimbledon in 2009 that the world's top four players have reached the last four at a WTA tournament.

Rafael Nadal served up back-to-back finishing aces on Friday as the Spaniard's clay court juggernaut headed closer to a seventh title at the Barcelona Open with a 6-2, 6-2 thrashing of Janko Tipsarevic.

Nadal's quarterfinal win in 83 minutes, with five breaks of serve, helped the French Open champion take his record here to 33-1, with 32 straight wins.

In front of some of the players he has molded into one of the greatest football teams of all time, Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola stepped down on Friday, bringing to a close a four-year reign of unprecedented success.

Guardiola announced he will leave the club at the end of the season, explaining at a news conference held at the Camp Nou stadium that the demands of the job were too high and his energy levels too low to continue.

Rafael Nadal recorded his 31st consecutive win at his home Barcelona Open on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals at the expense of Colombian qualifier Robert Farah 6-2, 6-3.

Spain's world number two improved his near-impeccable record at the event to 32-1 as he aims to lift a seventh title from his last eight appearances.

The Chicago Bulls will open the postseason Saturday against Philadelphia, just before Miami and New York renew their playoff rivalry.

Oklahoma City hosts defending NBA champion Dallas later Saturday, while Indiana faces Orlando in the early Saturday night game.