MILAN - Javier Zanettis last home match at the San Siro was celebrated with a win as Inter Milan beat Lazio 4-1 to all but guarantee a Europa League berth from the Serie A on Saturday. Zanetti will retire after 19 seasons at Inter, and the stadium was sold out as fans packed in to bid farewell to their 40-year-old captain. Lazio threatened to spoil the party when Giuseppe Biava scored the opening goal inside two minutes to stun San Siro. However, Rodrigo Palacio scored twice, either side of Mauro Icardis strike, and Hernanes netted against his former club to secure victory. At the end of the match, footage was shown on the big screens of Zanettis greatest Inter moments, and the clearly emotional player was led out by his family, peers and club presidents, with all his teammates wearing shirts with his number four on it. To chants of "theres only one captain," Zanetti took the microphone and thanked the fans and teammates. "I have always tried to honour and defend the Inter shirt in every country in the world," he said. "I learnt to love it thanks to you, I will love you forever. A very lovely career is coming to an end for me. I dont know what I will do but now one thing is certain: I will defend Inter even off the pitch." Players from across the globe also took to Twitter to pay tribute to Zanetti, including former teammate Mario Balotelli, who wrote, "Javier Zanetti is an example of humanity and professionalism for all of us!" Inter has five points more than Torino and six more than Parma and AC Milan, who all have two matches remaining. It is the same number of points above Hellas Verona, which squandered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at home to Udinese following a superb goal from Antonio Di Natale. Verona and Inter have only one match remaining. Inter coach Walter Mazzarri was resoundly booed before kickoff when it was revealed Zanetti was starting on the bench. The 20-year-old Mateo Kovacic - who was less than four months old when Zanetti made his Inter debut - set up two of the goals with delightful throughballs. The Inter players hugged Zanetti after every goal, and the Argentine was eventually sent on seven minutes into the second half to a raucous standing ovation. Zanetti was wearing a special captains armband for the occasion. It had the words "Zanetti 4 Ever" in large letters over a background with the name of all his Inter teammates past and present. In Verona, substitute Badu came off the bench with minutes left and drilled in a stoppage-time equalizer for Udinese with a low shot into the corner. Luca Toni put Verona in front from the penalty spot in the 14th minute after Alessandro Agostini was tripped by Allan. It was the veteran strikers 20th league goal of the season. Emil Hallfredsson doubled Veronas lead in the 54th before Di Natale pulled one back two minutes later in stunning fashion. The Udinese forward controlled the ball with his back to goal and swiveled to fire a volley under the bar with his second touch for his 190th Serie A goal. Raul Mondesi Jersey . Blatter also told reporters Saturday after meeting with Qatars emir that the decision to award the tournament to the desert nation is "not reversible." There have been calls to move the tournament because of Qatars intense heat. Austin Romine Yankees Jersey . The Kelowna, B.C. rink made the announcement on their facebook page on Thursday night. https://www.cheapyankees.com/381g-gleyber-torres-jersey-yankees.html . - The Pittsburgh Pirates plan on keeping promising left fielder Starling Marte playing alongside National League MVP Andrew McCutchen for years to come. Breyvic Valera Jersey . After the loss, White refused to make good on the bet, instead offering Hoyt tickets to a Bears game. Dellin Betances Jersey . "I had a pretty good year," the soft-spoken Granberg told TSN.ca with a grin from the teams annual rookie tournament in London. A fourth-round selection in 2010, Granberg is worth keeping an eye on with NHL training camps rolling around in less than a week. The six-foot-two, 200-pound defender may not possess the wow-inspiring theatrics of fellow prospect Morgan Rielly, but nonetheless has a chance to contribute with the Leafs when all is said and done this season.Beijing, China (SportsNetwork.com) - Reigning champion and three-time overall titlist Novak Djokovic and red-hot superstar Rafael Nadal were a pair of quarterfinal winners Friday at the $2.315 million China Open. The top-seeded world No. 1 Djokovic cut down 6-foot-6 American Sam Querrey 6-1, 6-2 in a mere 52 minutes, while the second-seeded former No. 1 Nadal came from behind to beat pesky Italian Fabio Fognini 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 on the hardcourts at the National Tennis Center. Nadal was one point away from trailing Fognini 2-6, 1-5 on Day 5 before mounting a dramatic comeback. The U.S. and French Open champion Nadal would supplant Djokovic atop the mens rankings with a victory over Tomas Berdych here on Saturday. The super Spaniard already owns a whopping 10 titles on tour this year and is currently riding a 20-match winning streak. "Its something that doesnt create more pressure for me," Nadal said. "Its something that already happened in the past. If that happens again, it will be good, it will be special for me, but well see. "I am going to have a very tough opponent in front of me. In the end, its anoother match.dddddddddddd True, its a little bit more special for the circumstances, but nothing else. Its the semi-final match of a big tournament, I am going to try to be competitive and try to play my best tennis. If not, I am going to have no chance to be through. It is not the moment to think about No. 1; it is the moment to think about Berdych." Nadal is a dominant 15-3 lifetime against Berdych, who lost to the mighty Spaniard in the 2010 Wimbledon final. Nadal is 3-0 versus the Czech slugger this season. The 13-time Grand Slam champion Nadal, who was the China Open champ back in 2005, was last ranked No. 1 in July of 2011. The Australian Open titlist Djokovics opponent in Saturdays semifinals will be fifth-seeded U.S. Open semifinalist Richard Gasquet. Fridays other quarters saw Gasquet upend third-seeded French Open runner-up David Ferrer 6-3, 6-4 and a fourth-seeded Berdych top eighth-seeded American John Isner 7-5, 6-2. The 2011 China Open champion Berdych was a runner-up in Bangkok last week. Ferrer was the 2010 Beijing runner-up to Djokovic. The 2013 China Open titlist will earn $557,100. ' ' '