improved dramatically and there were several reasons why

BARCELONA, Spain -- Struggling in the Spanish league and the Europa League, Athletic Bilbao was fortunate to escape with a 0-0 draw from its visit to third-division Eibar in the fourth round of the Copa del Rey on Thursday. Wholesale Jerseys USA. Fernando Llorente made his first start of the season for Bilbao since refusing to extend his contract with his boyhood club beyond next summer. But even with the Spain striker on the pitch with a first-choice side, Bilbao was outplayed by the fellow Basque club. The 23-time cup winner Bilbao showed none of the verve that led it to last years final. Eibar, meanwhile, created three clear scoring chances in the first half that its forwards failed to finish. "We played poorly in the first half and should have been losing by halftime," said Bilbao coach Marcelo Bielsa, whose team has only won two of its first nine games in the Spanish league and is winless in three games in its Europa League group. "It may sound strange to hear -- Im not especially disappointed with drawing with Eibar. But it would be arrogant to say that we showed we were better than our rival." Bilbao was not the only favourite to flop in the opening leg of the knockout series on Thursday. Fellow first-division sides Levante, Real Sociedad and Osasuna all lost to lower-division opponents. Levante will have to look to bounce back in the second leg from a 1-0 loss at third-tier Melilla. Melilla midfielder Fernando Velasco scored from the penalty spot in the 39th after being fouled by Nikolaos Karampelas. Melilla, the team of one of Spains two enclave cities on the north African coast, held on for the victory despite Carlos David receiving his second booking in the 71st. "There are no excuses for the result," said Levante coach Juan Ignacio Martinez. "Our rival went for the win and the risk paid off. We need to remember that we cant lose our sense of humility." Cordoba, playing in the second division, beat visiting Sociedad 2-0 at Arcangel stadium with goals by Javier Patino and Vincenzo Rennella. Sporting Gijon-- relegated from the first division last season-- edged Osasuna 1-0 at home thanks to Gaston Sangoys goal in the fifth minute. Getafe was the only first-division team to get a win over a lower-division opponent. The Madrid-based team routed second-division Ponferradina 4-0, with two goals from Jaime Gavilan and one apiece for Pablo Sarrabia and Paco Alcacer. Sevilla, a cup winner in 2010, beat an Espanyol side full of reserves 3-1 to take commanding lead in their tie. Espanyol looked set to snatch a valuable away draw when Cristian Alfonso cancelled out Federico Fazios early opener with a long-range shot in the 69th. But Sevilla defender Juan "Cala" Torres volleyed in a corner seven minutes from time, before Alvaro Negredo converted a spot kick in added time after Ernest Galan pulled the striker down in the box. Sevilla coach Michel Gonzalez said his teams winning margin was larger than its performance had merited. "We didnt have the ball, and not because they took it away from us, but because we kept losing it," Michel said. "We have a lot to improve." Elsewhere, Alberto Bueno scored five minutes from halftime to give 10-man Valladolid a 1-0 home win over Real Betis. Valladolids Henrique Moreno was red carded for striking an opposing player, but Betis failed to take advantage of its extra man for the final 25 minutes. Mallorca took away a 1-1 draw from Deportivo La Coruna after Pedro Geromel levelled in the 71st following Deportivo defender Manuel Pablos beautiful long-range strike in the 54th. The return legs of the round-of-32-- the first with Spains 20 first-division teams joining the lower-division survivors from the opening three rounds-- will be played during the last week of November. Wholesale Jerseys Cheap. Beckham failed to make the British team, ending his chances to cap a successful career with an Olympic victory at home, so it will be up to the 38-year-old Manchester United veteran and the 20-year-old Brazilian sensation to try to create some hype about a competition which lacks the lustre of footballs top events. Cheap Jerseys China. The Slovakian veteran and 2004 Eastbourne runner-up Hantuchova humbled British wild card Anne Keothavong 6-2, 6-3 at Devonshire Park. In some other first-round play on Day 1, Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak defeated Kazakhstans Galina Voskoboeva, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), South African Chanelle Scheepers held off German Mona Barthel 6-1, 4-6, 6-1, and Austrian Tamira Paszek handled New Zealands Marina Erakovic 7-5, 6-1. http://www.choicejerseys.com/. -- Casey Martin and his cart are headed back to The Olympic Club for the U. Wholesale Jerseys. -- Canadas performance was uneven, but their 3-2 win over Finland was important psychologically at the womens world hockey championship Sunday. Wholesale Jerseys China. Maple Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher has announced that former-Leaf Joe Nieuwendyk has been named the hockey clubs special assistant to the general manager. DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Derrick Rose isnt sure hell be the same player once he returns from his knee surgery. He thinks he might be better. The superstar point guards recovery remains the biggest issue hanging over the Chicago Bulls, particularly after they announced a four-year contract extension for coach Tom Thibodeau on Monday. Rose is expected to miss a big chunk of the season after tearing the ACL in his left knee late in a playoff-opening win over the Philadelphia 76ers, an injury that sent the top-seeded Bulls staggering toward a first-round exit. "Im going to be a better player, but who knows in what area?" Rose said at the teams media day session. "My legs have never been this strong before. My upper body has never been this strong before. My core has never been this strong before. Im just going to see how far this takes me." The strides hes made since his surgery are encouraging, but his return date remains up in the air. How soon after that until hes back to his old MVP form remains to be seen, too. He and the Bulls arent revealing any specific timetables, other than they hope to have him back at some point this season. Rose is curious to see what he can do once that time comes. "I cant wait to get back on the court to see what Im going to do," he said. "I dont know how Im going to play. I dont know whats going to be new about my game. I know its just going to be exciting for everyone to see." General manager Gar Forman said hes never seen a player approach rehab the way Rose has. Even so, hes still a long way from returning, and the Bulls are going to take a cautious approach. "Lets not forget, hes got a long way to go," Forman said. "He remains focused, committed to what hes doing. There havent been any setbacks. Thats why we say hes on schedule, but as far as the future is concerned, were taking this process step by step. Up to this step, hes right where we want him to be." Rose realizes hell have to convince the Bulls, doctors and trainers once he feels hes ready to return. His next big hurdle on the court will come in about two weeks. Thats when hell start making abrupt changes in direction. "Cutting is the hardest thing in the world right now to do," he said. "Im scared of it." Getting by without Rose will difficult for the Bulls. They were widely viewed as the biggest threat to Miami in the Eastern Conference after capturing the top seed for the second straight year, but that changed once Rose went down. With Joakim Noah spraining his left ankle later in the 76ers series and Luuol Deng playing with a torn ligament in his left wrist, the Bulls bowed out early after losing to the Heat in the conference finals the previous year.dddddddddddd Now, the team has a different look, with its franchise player sidelined and most of the so-called "bench mob" gone. The Bulls brought in veteran Kirk Hinrich for a second stint to run the point with Rose gone and likely move into a backup role once he returns, but for now, outside expectations arent particularly high. "Our goals are going to stay the same, and thats to win a championship," Rose said. "You never know how were going to play. With basketball, you can have all the greatest players, but you have to play as a team to win. The team that won it last year, Miami, they built that team where they didnt have all the best players. They had players that knew their role. They play hard, did what they had to do to win, and thats what we need to do." He said getting Thibodeau locked in for the long term helps. The Bulls had already exercised their option for next season, and the extension runs through 2016-17. The Bulls would not reveal the financial terms. Yahoo Sports, citing unidentified league sources, reported the deal includes $17.5 million in base salary with bonuses, potentially pushing the package to $20 million "Obviously, Im glad that we got the contract part done," said Thibodeau, who is 112-36 in two seasons. "Im looking forward to the challenge ahead. My expectations are always the same. Thats for our players to put everything they have into each and every game, to strive for improvement and play our best basketball the second half of the season." Notes: Deng said his wrist has improved dramatically and there were several reasons why he opted against surgery, which still remains a possibility. "First thing, I wanted to play in the Olympics (for Great Britain)," he said. "I really wanted to do that. Its something I wanted to experience. I wanted to play with the guys I grew up with, the country that took me in. A lot of things go into it. Before the year was over, my wrist kept getting stronger and better. ... I started focusing on my rehab. It started to get better. That also was part of my decision. I didnt want to get surgery and miss a lot of games. Im at a time in my career where I want to play every game." ... Forman said he thinks Noahs ankle is fine. ... The Bulls signed free agents Ryan Allen, Vance Cooksey, Andre Emmett, Kyrylo Fesenko and Marko Jaric to round out their training camp roster. ' ' '