Ole Gunnar Solskjaer blasted Manchester United's worst performance of the season as Manchester City ran riot in the first half of the 3-1 Carabao Cup semifinal first leg win at Old Trafford.

Solskjaer was critical of a dismal 22-minute spell before half-time that saw Pep Guardiola's side score times. Only Marcus Rashford's second-half consolation kept United in the tie ahead of the second leg at the Etihad Stadium on Jan. 29 (stream live at 2:45 p.m. ET on ESPN+).

"From their goal until half-time is the worst we've played," said Solskjaer. "We couldn't cope with the set back [of the first goal]. We let them play, our heads dropped and made decisions we shouldn't do and it needed sorting at half time.

"Second half was a good response, it's a steep mountain to climb."

Solskjaer is the latest United manager to be charged with bridging the gap with City, who have won the last two Premier League titles, but after a chastening night, the Norwegian accepted the gulf will not be easy to overcome.

"It's not a quick fix," said Solskjaer. "It's something that we've started and I think you can see we're still a way off. We started something that needed doing."

Solskjaer was also left to field questions about whether or not his rebuild will continue this month. The January transfer window is open. but United are adamant they will only sign players if long-term targets become available. Meanwhile, Ashley Young, who was not in the squad against City, has been linked with a move to Inter Milan

"We are a young team and with injuries we've had and illnesses it shows more and [signing players] is something we're looking at," said Solskjaer. "If something is there for us, I've got the backing to do something but if it isn't the right thing we won't do anything.

"Tonight is not the time to talk about players leaving because we need the players we have in the squad and we've got a few months left of this season. We can't weaken ourselves, we need to strengthen ourselves, if any movement is going to happen."

MANCHESTER, England -- It was Groundhog Day at Manchester United again. Another Manchester derby, another Old Trafford humiliation against Manchester City. This time, even the City players could see the funny side, with Bernardo Silva and Riyad Mahrez caught on camera laughing as they walked off the pitch at half-time Tuesday with their team 3-0 ahead.

They could have been laughing at anything. A private joke, perhaps, or a wisecrack from the stands. Or, more likely, they were laughing at how bad United had been in front of their own supporters during the opening period of this Carabao Cup semifinal first leg. It looked as though Silva and Mahrez could not believe how easy it had been.

It was 3-0, but it could have been six. It probably should have been, so dominant had City been in the first half.

- Stream a replay of Manchester United vs. Manchester City on ESPN+

"We could have gone in four or five up at half-time," Silva said. "We had the chances."

That the game ended 3-1, following a Marcus Rashford goal in the second half, was down to City taking the foot off the pedal rather than United finding some form to save themselves. But even though United are still -- mathematically, at least -- in with a chance of reaching the Carabao Cup final by turning this tie around in the second leg at the Etihad on Jan. 29, it will take a miraculous performance to deny Pep Guardiola's side.

"It's a steep mountain to climb," United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said with some understatement after the game. "But we can still climb it."

This was a night when United were not only humiliated by their neighbours, it was a night when the mismanagement of the club in recent years was exposed for all to see.

It was men against boys -- City's class and experience against United's mediocrity and raw youngsters -- but it has been pretty much the same ever since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, with City winning on five of their eight visits to Old Trafford in that time. City did not even have a striker playing in this game, with Guardiola opening with both Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus on the bench, but they still tore United apart.

After six years of bad decisions, poor recruitment and managerial mistakes, this is where United are now. Injuries contributed to Solskjaer's team being weaker than he would have wished, with Harry Maguire and Paul Pogba unavailable, but that was about it. The United manager was not missing half a team of senior players.

Last summer's failure to recruit more quality players, in addition to Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Daniel James, left Solskjaer fielding a team that consisted of a goalkeeper who is living off his past reputation in David de Gea, defenders in Phil Jones and Victor Lindelof who are simply not good enough, a midfield of Fred and Andreas Pereira that is the club's worst in living memory and a selection of exciting prospects -- kids, basically -- up front in Rashford, James and Mason Greenwood. City's team was stacked with world-class quality -- seasoned players at the peak of their careers -- and they even had Aguero, Jesus and David Silva sitting on the bench.

United's youngsters, including full-back Brandon Williams and the injured Scott McTominay, have carried the team in recent weeks while the more experienced players have continually failed to deliver. It says everything about the malaise and shortsightedness at United that Jones, Ashley Young and Jesse Lingard are still at the club, despite it being clear for years that they are either too old or too inconsistent to be in Solskjaer's squad.

Solskjaer himself is also an issue. The Norwegian revived the club for a while last season after replacing the sacked Jose Mourinho, but results this campaign have been worse than any of his predecessors', and he was given a tactical lesson by Guardiola as City ran riot. As Solskjaer stood on the touchline with his hands in his pockets, sporadically directing his players, he looked like a man trying to hail a taxi in the rain rather than a coach with a plan.

United desperately need reinforcements this month, but the party line from within the club is that they will sign players in January only if they are capable of making the team better. It shouldn't be difficult to find a few of those, although if making United better is the criteria, it might take a while counting them as they all form a line outside Old Trafford. Solskjaer delivered mixed messages on recruitment after Tuesday's game, initially saying that a short-term solution is "something we're looking at," before going on to say that, "if it isn't the right thing, we won't do anything."

This United team is crying out for old heads, however, and players capable of taking the pressure off the youngsters and making it easier for them to perform. Pereira, for instance, could become a much more influential player with a senior midfielder alongside him, guiding him along. But right now, Pereira and too many other United youngsters are being left to fight for themselves, and that approach will end only one way against a team as strong as City.

The optimists will point to United's 2-1 Premier League win at City last month as evidence of green shoots of recovery at Old Trafford, but it can be easy to mistake green shoots for a flash in the pan.

This tie might well be lost, but the bigger picture for United is about being able to play in big games and win them regularly again. They are still not there, more than six years after Ferguson vacated the stage, and the excuses are wearing thin.

Sooner or later, United have to deliver, with or without Solskjaer at the wheel.

HOUSTON -- A 2-year-old girl struck by a foul ball during a Houston Astros game at Minute Maid Park continues to receive anti-seizure medication seven months after suffering a brain injury that could leave her at risk of seizures for life, an attorney for her family said.

In a report posted Tuesday, Richard Mithoff told the Houston Chronicle that the child's brain injury is permanent.

"She remains subject to seizures and is on medication and will be, perhaps, for the rest of her life. That may or may not be resolved,'' Mithoff said.

Mithoff said doctors have described the effects of the injury to her central nervous system as similar to those of a stroke. The areas of the brain affected include those in which injuries can lead to seizures, loss of sensation and loss of spatial awareness, he said. Other potential effects include periods of unresponsiveness and staring spells, frequent headaches and night terrors, he said.

Doctors so far have not been able to determine if the child has cognitive deficits because of the skull fracture and brain injury resulting from the May 29 line drive to the back of her head off the bat of Chicago Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr.

"She is able to continue with much of her routine as a girl her age would do, but her parents have to particularly vigilant -- as they are,'' Mithoff said.

No legal action has been started, and Mithoff declined to comment on any conversations he may have had with Astros officials. However, he has advised them that he represents the family of the child, whose identity has not been released.

The Astros have declined comment, citing concerns for the family's privacy.

Major League Baseball has announced that for the 2020 season all 30 teams will extend the netting that protects infield grandstands.

SONOMA, Calif. — Sonoma Raceway is launching a new experiential automotive program that will allow drivers of all skill levels to enjoy the high-speed thrills of the premier wine country motorsports venue.

The Sears Point Racing Experience will offer high-performance driving courses, racing programs, safe driver training, corporate outings, manufacturer showcases, go-karting and more.  Programs can utilize the raceway’s vehicle fleet or customers can test their own cars on the famed 2.52-mile road course.

The new venture, launched Jan. 1, builds upon instruction platforms and assets previously operated by the Simraceway Performance Driving Center.

New programs, schedules and options will be rolled out in the coming months. All programs and gift cards previously purchased from Simraceway will be honored and executed by the Sears Point Racing Experience.

The new venture continues the facility’s 46-year history of hosting an on-site racing school. Since 1973, the raceway has been home to four different top-tier performance driving/racing schools beginning with the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving (1973-1990), Skip Barber Racing School (1990-’95), Jim Russell Racing Drivers School (1995-2006) and Simraceway Performance Driving Center (2006-’19).

“The hands-on automotive experience has always been the core of our day-to-day business and the demand for these activities has grown dramatically over the last decade,” said Steve Page, Sonoma Raceway president and general manager.  “We are very excited to launch this new venture and to further integrate these behind-the-wheel opportunities with our existing menu of customer experiences.”

The Racing Experience will operate from the existing 18,000-square foot facility adjacent to Turn 1 of the 12-turn road course; karting operations will also continue at the three-quarter-mile Sonoma Raceway Karting Center.

For more information on available programs and opportunities, visit www.searspointracing.com or call 800-733-0345.

PENNGROVE, Calif. – Chase Johnson prides himself on being able to climb into any type of race car and quickly develop into a contender.

The Californian has done just that in limited midget starts, winning for car owner Tom Malloy last year in only four event appearances.

The duo will team up again next week during the 34th annual Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals Presented by General Tire, Jan. 13-18 inside the River Spirit Expo Center in Tulsa, Okla.

“You always set goals and expectations for yourself and you want to do the best you can, but I try not to put too many expectations on myself because I don’t want to have too much pressure,” Johnson said. “I feel confident in myself and I feel confident with the team. We had a great year in all the different cars I drove and I had better runs in the midget than I’ve ever had.”

While this year will be his first Chili Bowl start with Malloy, Johnson has enjoyed success at the event with two other teams, including Morris Motorsports, for whom he enjoyed his career-best event performance two years ago.

“If we have luck on our side I think it will be a good Chili Bowl, but everyone knows how stuff inside that building can go,” he said. “Stuff can change really quick. Even with a great car and driver stuff can go bad really quick.”

Johnson is a past Saturday A-main starter at the Chili Bowl, racing his way in via a top-three preliminary night finish in 2018 and going on to eighth place in the 55-lap finale.

It’s not an easy task for any driver, something Johnson knows full well as he chases his second appearance in the big show.

“If you have a good car and you play your cards right, playing it smart and not being too aggressive, you can put yourself in a good spot. Yet there’s stuff that can always go wrong,” Johnson noted. “If it goes wrong at the wrong time, it can make the week not so enjoyable. You have to have luck on your side regardless of how good your car is. Hopefully everything goes smooth.”

Johnson’s preliminary night is currently scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 15.

Manchester City used a barnstorming first half to ease past Manchester United 3-1 in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semifinal at Old Trafford on Tuesday night.

United beat City 2-1 when they last met in the Premier League on Dec. 7, but a repeat of that result looked unlikely from the outset with a nearly full strength XI from Pep Guardiola forcing the issue from the outset.

Bernardo Silva opened the scoring for the visitors with an unstoppable curling effort from 20 yards on 17 minutes that was in the back of the net before David De Gea had time to react.

Riyad Mahrez doubled the lead soon after the half-hour mark, pouncing on a Silva through ball on a counter-attack and rounding De Gea before tapping into an open net.

"We could have gone in four or five up at halftime, we had the chances. They pressed us higher in the second half, we got tired but overall we are happy," said Bernardo Silva.

"I enjoyed my role -- because it worked and we won. Pep wanted one more man in the middle."

City got their third from another counter-attack, this time Kevin De Bruyne forcing the issue and blasting a shot off De Gea that Andreas Pereira redirected into his own goal to give the visitors a 3-0 lead at half-time.

United looked more solid after the introduction of midfielder Nemanja Matic at the break and got a foothold in the tie through a 70th-minute goal from Marcus Rashford after De Gea made a brilliant save on a close-range Mahrez shot.

The England striker was picked out by a perfectly-weighted pass from Mason Greenwood and coolly slipped the ball past keeper Claudio Bravo.

The goal enlivened the hosts, who kicked on in vain for another, with the tie set to be decided on Jan. 29 when Man United visit the Etihad (2:45 p.m. ET, stream live on ESPN+) with a spot in the Wembley final on the line.

Despite the convincing win, Guardiola wouldn't hear talk of the tie being over ahead of the second leg.

"The last game, we could not control when we lost the ball and tonight we did it better," the City boss told the BBC. "We lost the ball in a position which is so dangerous [for the United goal]. We cannot forget which team we play. Tonight we can be more than satisfied to come here to Old Trafford and win.

"It is not over. We have one more game and we'll see what happens.

"Of course Manchester United can come back. Last year here they lost to PSG and they qualify (in the Champions League). They have the shirt which means history and pride."

Leicester City face Aston Villa in the first leg of the other semifinal on Wednesday (3 p.m. ET, stream live on ESPN+)..

North Carolina is off to an 8-6 start to the season, and in the wake of a 96-83 loss to Georgia Tech on Sunday, a frustrated coach Roy Williams called his squad "the least gifted team I've ever coached in the time that I've been back here."

Speaking on his weekly radio show "Roy Williams Live" on Monday, the longtime coach expounded on frustrations he had about how the Tar Heels, who began Sunday's game down 19-2, performed in the loss.

"We stunk, OK. We were not very good," Williams said. "The crazy thing about it is, our team, and we've had some very gifted teams, this is not a very gifted team. It's just not."

This is the first time UNC has lost six of its first 15 games in the Williams era, which began in 2003-04. On Monday, the coach blamed much of the poor start on the number of departures for the NBA draft after last season -- Coby White, Cameron Johnson and Nassir Little were first-round picks -- as well as an injury to star Cole Anthony.

However, Williams said the lack of talent is no excuse.

"So, if you're going to be like that, you gotta bring your A-game," he said. "Even though your A-game may not even be an A-game, you gotta bring your best game to play on game day."

The Tar Heels take on Pittsburgh (10-4, 1-2) on Wednesday.

The NBA on Tuesday said via its Last Two Minute Report that officials erred by not calling a foul on Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert in the closing seconds of Monday's controversial win against the Pelicans in New Orleans.

With Utah up two, Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram drove directly at Gobert, who was at the rim. Gobert jumped straight up and made contact with Ingram's right arm as he released the ball, but no foul was called.

The referees signaled the game was over after going to the review to see whether there was any time left on the clock after any possible clock malfunction. Once they determined that -- because rules prohibit them from retroactively adding a foul in that situation -- the game was finished.

In its report, the NBA said Gobert did indeed make contact with Ingram's arm during his shot attempt. Had it been called correctly, Ingram would have gone to the free throw line with a chance to send the game to overtime with .9 seconds left.

New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry said after the game that he wasn't given an explanation on the court for why there wasn't a foul call.

"All we did was exactly what we were supposed to do, took the ball, drove it hard at the basket, and then they determined it wasn't a foul," Gentry said. "End of game."

Ospreys will appoint former Wales coach Mike Ruddock as their new performance director until the end of the season.

Ruddock joined the troubled region as a consultant at the start of December and is now taking on a permanent position.

Ospreys have lost 13 out of 14 games this season and parted company with head coach Allen Clarke.

Coaches Carl Hogg and Matt Sherratt will continue to take charge of first-team affairs on the training ground as they have since Clarke's departure.

Ospreys are looking to appoint a new head coach while Sherratt is also leaving the region at the end of the season to take up a position at Worcester.

Ospreys have not won since 12 October and have suffered 11 successive Pro14 and Champions Cup losses.

Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones has criticised the Ospreys off-field management and raised questions over recruitment and accountability.

Ruddock was initially brought in from Irish club side Lansdowne to "offer support and advice" to Sherratt and Hogg while reviewing rugby operations with the struggling region.

Ospreys had negotiated Ruddock's release from his current coaching role with Lansdowne FC in Dublin and with Acorn Recruitment.

At the time of his appointment Ruddock said he was unsure whether he would stay with the struggling Pro14 region beyond a month.

The region has parted company with previous head coach Allen Clarke who had not been in charge of first-team affairs since the end of November with the final departure happening on 30 December.

Ospreys had lost eight out of nine competitive games prior to Ruddock's initial arrival.

They've subsequently lost a further five in a row, including two 40 point defeats against Racing 92 in the Champions Cup and three Welsh Pro14 Christmas Derby losses including a 44-0 hammering at Scarlets on Boxing Day.

After considerable success with Newport Gwent Dragons, Ruddock succeeded Steve Hansen as Wales coach in 2004, winning the Grand Slam at his first attempt in 2005.

After leaving the Wales job in February 2006, he then spent three seasons with Worcester Warriors, from 2007 to 2010, following relegation from the Premiership.

Ruddock was appointed as head coach of the Ireland Under-20s in 2010 before becoming involved with Lansdowne.

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Go Fas Racing has named Ryan Sparks as the crew chief of the No. 32 Ford Mustang ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series season, completing the team’s roster.

A native of Winston Salem, N.C., Sparks joins the GFR organization from Richard Childress Racing, where he served as a race engineer on the No. 3 Cup Series team with Austin Dillon.

Sparks was also a race engineer during Dillon’s 2011 Truck and 2013 Nationwide (Xfinity) Series title-winning seasons.

“I am beyond ecstatic for the opportunity that the St. Hilaire family has given me,” said Sparks. “This is something I’ve been working for my entire career, and I’m looking forward to working with Corey and continuing Go Fas Racing’s progression up the points standings.”

During his 13-year tenure at RCR, Sparks was a part of a wide array of achievements including a Daytona 500 win and a Coca-Cola 600 victory – two of NASCAR’s most prestigious events – while working with Dillon.

With an established skill set, Sparks’ knowledge will be advantageous to the GFR team in helping the organization continue to improve as a single-car team.

“Ryan comes with a ton of motivation and knowledge to continue pushing the team in the right direction,” said LaJoie. “Just by being around him for a couple hours on his first day, I knew he was the guy for the job.”