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Bangladesh will be desperate to return to winning ways against Cambodia in their opening match of the AFC Challenge Cup at 6.00pm at the Bangabandhu National Stadium today. After three successive defeats in international matches the hosts will be looking to get the ideal start as they are tipped to be one of the favourites to win the title.
   Bangladesh lost to India 2-0 in the SAFF Championship final, and 5-0 to Uzbekistan and 1-0 to Hong Kong in the Asian Cup qualifiers. Cambodia with a ranking of 188 in the FIFA list, 45 places below Bangladesh, however, will not be a tough nut to crack if Bangladesh play to their abilities.
   Coach Diego Andres Cruciani looked a worried man with his new defence line-up. With lynchpins Hasan-al- Mamun and Shujon ruled out due to injury, he will have to rely on Rajani, Nazrul, Faisal Ahmed and Parvez Babu in the four-man defence.
   Aminul will be the man under the bar. Captain Joy leads the midfield along with Arman Aziz, Abul and Uzzal. Veteran Alfaz will be the playmaker behind the two strikers –Emily and Kanchan.
   Skipper Joy emphasized on the need for a good start. ‘We are playing in our backyard and all the players are ready to present their best. I have told the players to play their normal game and hope that we start the tournament with a satisfactory performance,’ said Joy.
   He was, however, reluctant to draw a line when asked to compare the current squad with the SAFF Championship squad. ‘The challenges are different and the scenario also. Missing Shujon and Hasan are big setbacks but I hope the newcomers will be in the right frame to make them ready for the future,’ said Joy.
   Joy was not concerned about his opponent. ‘We want to win playing better football, I don’t have any idea about Cambodia but we have to produce the best,’ said Bangladesh skipper.
   Cambodia football manager Lors Salakhan thinks that football is waking up after the ravages of the civil war led to disintegration of the game but is still very popular.
   Salakhan revealed that most of his players are under-23s and will be looking to give their best in their quest of earning experience.
   ‘We will be trying to win and our first aim is to produce good football and turn it into a win,’ said Salakhan who admitted there is no star in his team as all of them are of similar level.

Sri Lanka’s highest run-scorer Sanath Jayasuriya Friday said he would retire from Test cricket next week to concentrate on the one-day game.
   The 36-year-old left-handed opener told AFP he would
   make his final Test appearance in the second match against Pakistan starting in Kandy on Monday.
   ‘I thought about it long and hard and decided that’s it. It’s a very emotional moment, but I guess every good thing has to come to an end,’ he said.
   Jayasuriya handed in his letter of resignation to Duleep Mendis, chief executive officer of Sri Lanka Cricket, on Friday.
   However, he said he would still be available for selection for next year’s World Cup.
   The veteran of 101 Tests is Sri Lanka’s most prolific batsman in both forms of the game.
   But injuries have kept the all-rounder out of the side on a few occasions in the past six months.
   After missing the three-match one-day series against Pakistan with a thigh strain he just managed six and 13 runs in the drawn first Test in Colombo.
   A former Sri Lanka captain, Jayasuriya’s absence in the top of the order will be missed, but it will allow him to fully concentrate on one-day cricket ahead of the World Cup. ’

National selectors announced an 18-member preliminary squad for the upcoming home series against Australia, picking all but one player, who were involved in the Sri Lanka and Kenya series.
   Nazmul Hossain is the only player to miss out.
   It was expected that the Test squad would be named on the day as the time is getting nearer, but the selectors thought otherwise.
   ‘Since we are the home side we have still enough time left to name the Test squad. Instead of making hurry, we want to give all the players a chance of practice. If we name the Test team now, the ODI players will be deprived of that,’ chief selector Faruque Ahmed said.
   The squad will start practice from today at the Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
   Squad: Habibul Bashar, Khaled Mashud, Javed Omar, Shahriar Nafees, Nafees Iqbal, Mohammad Ashraful, Rajin Saleh, Aftab Ahmed, Mohammad Rafique, Enamul Haque Jr, Mushfiqur Rahim, Alok Kapali, Mashrafee
   Bin Murtaza, Shahadat Hossain, Syed Russell, Manjarul Islam Rana, Abdur Razzak and Tapash Baishya.

FIFA sprang a surprise on Friday by naming just 23 referees to cover the 64 games of the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
   The Referees Committee made the final choice from 44 candidates who underwent tests in Frankfurt last weekend.
   The 23 referees come from 23 different countries and include well-known figures such as Markus Merk of Germany and Lubos Michel of Slovakia.
   A total of 36 referees officiated at the last World Cup in South Korea and Japan in 2002 and FIFA had been expected to choose around 30 this time.
   Instead, FIFA named a seven-strong group of ‘support’ referees who will be present at the tournament but will only officiate in the event of another referee being unable to take charge of a match because of injury or illness, for example.
   The places of Frank De Bleeckere of Belgium and Carlos Batres of Guatemala in the 23-man team are subject to the completion of fitness tests, after they were unable to take part in them in Frankfurt because of injury.
   List of 23 referees chosen to officiate at the 2006 World Cup in Germany:
   Essam Abd El Fatah (Egypt), Carlos Amarilla (Paraguay), Benito Archundia (Mexico), Carlos Batres (Guatemala), Massimo Busacca (Switzerland), Coffi Codjia (Benin), Frank De Bleeckere (Belgium), Massimo de Santis (Italy), Horacio Elizondo (Argentina), Valentin Ivanov (Russia), Toru Kamikawa (Japan), Jorge Larrionda (Uruguay), Shamsul Maidin (Singapore), Manuel Mejuto Gonzalez
   (Spain), Markus Merk (Germany), Lubos Michel (Slovakia), Graham Poll (England), Eric Poulat (France), Peter Prendergast (Jamaica), Oscar Ruiz (Colombia), Mark Shield (Australia), Carlos Simon (Brazil), Kyros Vassaras (Greece).

Kyrgyzstan
   Although the team has not yet participated in the finals of a continental event, the team has continually shown glimpses of promise and potential. Kyrgyzstan recorded impressive wins against Singapore 1-0 and Syria (twice 2-1 and 1-0) in World Cup qualifying matches, their highest margin being against Maldives 6-0 in 1997 and Pakistan 4-0 in 2003.
   The Kyrgyz national team started preparations for the AFC Challenge Cup early on in January with a camp in Cyprus under experienced head coach (since 2003) Nematjan Zakirov and assistant coach Zagid Valiev.
   The player to watch out for is 18-year-old Emil Kenjisariev. Kyrgyzstan are ranked 159th worldwide.
   Macau
   Football is still in its infancy in Macau but they are receiving help from the Japan Football Association for the development of the game in this former Portuguese colony.
   They first took part in the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualifying round and lost to Japan 0-10 in both the matches but two years later in the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers they lost by three goals only.
   They finished third in the five-team 2003 East Asian Football Championship preliminary competition. They are preparing under Japanese head coach Masanaga Kageyama. They are in Group D alongside Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Pakistan.
   Pakistan
   Pakistan will have another chance to redeem themselves on the continental stage. They have failed to score in their last four outings including three matches against Bangladesh (SAFF Championship semi-final and home-and-away AFC Asian Cup 2007 pre-qualifiers) and one against Maldives in the SAFF Championship.
   They have UK-based Pakistani and former Leicester City player Usman Gondal in their ranks but Fulham midfielder Zeeshan Rehman and former captain Tanveer Ahmed have been shown the door. They are coached by Salman Ahmed Sharida of Bahrain.
   Tajikistan
   Tajikistan have never qualified for the finals of a continental event, but managed to record some impressive victories particularly over their neighbours, including a 4-0 win over Uzbekistan in a 1996 AFC Asian Cup qualifier and a 5-0 triumph over Turkmenistan in a France 1998 World Cup preliminary.
   At the World Cup level, the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification saw Tajikistan recording a 16-0 landslide victory over Guam. However, their loss of concentration in the second half against Iran 0-2 shattered their dreams.
   The Tajik coach is Sharif Nazarov and they are ranked 141 in FIFA world ranking.
   www.the-afc.com

India (230/6) beat England (226) by 4 wickets
   Teenager Suresh Raina hammered 81 not out from 89 balls to power India to a four-wicket victory over England in the second one-day international on Friday.
   The 19-year-old left-hander launched a blistering counter-attack to pull India out of trouble at 92 for five in reply to England’s 226 in 49.5 overs.
   Raina, dropped on 18 by paceman James Anderson off his own bowling, added 118 runs for the sixth wicket with Mahendra Dhoni (38) on a slow pitch of low bounce and India finished on 230 for six in 49 overs.
   India lead the seven-match series 2-0.
   Kevin Pietersen top-scored for England with 71 and equalled West Indian Viv Richards’s record for the fastest 1,000 runs in one-day cricket, reaching the milestone in his 21st innings.
   Pietersen and left-handed opener Andrew Strauss (61) were dropped off off-spinner Ramesh Powar before anchoring the innings after captain Andrew Flintoff chose to bat.
   Strauss added 66 runs with Matt Prior (33) for the first wicket and 64 for the third with Pietersen before six wickets tumbled in the last 10 overs in chase of quick runs.
   Flintoff, playing his 100th one-dayer, was stumped for five stepping out against Powar.
   Pietersen curbed his aggression and cut down the sweep shot after he was dropped on three trying to slog Powar. His sixth one-day fifty contained four fours and two sixes in 87 balls.
   Powar took three for 34 and paceman Shantakumaran Sree-santh three for 40.
   Raina played many improvised shots on the slow pitch, including an audacious chip over fine leg against paceman Kabir Ali, to rally India.
   Openers Virender Sehwag (26) and Gautam Gambhir (29) put on 61 before they went in quick succession to reckless shots.
   Captain Rahul Dravid was then run out for five, Yuvraj Singh (18) played on to left-arm spinner Ian Blackwell and Mohammad Kaif was out for duck as five wickets tumbled for 31 runs in a 11-over spell.
   Kaif has failed to score in three of his last four innings.
   England bowlers conceded just 19 runs between the 10th and 20th overs when Raina came in.
   He quickly took charge, lofting paceman Liam Plunkett over midwicket for fours, and ran hard between the wickets with Dhoni who hit just two fours in his 55-ball effort.
   India required 65 off the last 10 overs before Raina hammered three fours in one Ali over and India made it easily in the end. Raina’s knock, his maiden international 50, featured eight fours and a six.
   Although Flintoff (1-29) and Blackwell (2-39) bowled tightly, England were hampered by the absence of slow bowlers after Dravid used his slow bowlers effectively for 35 overs.
   India won the first game by 39 runs. The third game of the seven-match series will be played in Goa on Monday.

Coach Mickey Arthur believes South Africa have learned hard lessons from Test defeats by Australia which will stand them in good stead for the series against New Zealand in April and May.
   ‘As these guys have been playing five Tests against the top side in world cricket, they’ve been learning a great deal,’ Arthur told reporters on Thursday.
   ‘It will stand these players in really good stead and I believe we will get the benefits down the line.
   ‘We’re looking for stability and this is a young side that we can run with. They’re a couple of years off Australia, but they’re on the right track.
   ‘The inconsistency comes in when you’re playing a champion side that handles pressure so well. The constant pressure that Australia puts you under wears you down.
   ‘It’s like a golfer playing Tiger Woods in matchplay on a Friday, then having to do it again on Sunday and then getting up on Wednesday and Friday morning and do it all again,’ he said.
   Australia won the first two Tests of the series to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series after winning a home three-Test series 2-0 earlier in the season.
   ‘We’re obviously disappointed with our results, but a lot of positives have come out of these Tests,’ Arthur said.
   ‘I don’t believe the results have been a true reflection of how we’ve competed at stages. Australia have just played the pressure situations much better.
   ‘New Zealand loom large and we’ve got four Tests left this summer. We’d like to win at least three of those and New Zealand are one ahead of us on the rankings, so it’s a chance for us to move up those rankings.

Sachin Tendulkar’s surgeon believes his most famous patient could be fit for the tour of the West Indies after undergoing shoulder surgery in London.
   The 32-year-old was ruled out of the seven match one-day series against England after suffering a tear.
   But Andrew Wallace, who operated on him, told Test Match Special, ‘Surgery was fairly straightforward.
   ‘He’s made an excellent recovery. I expect he will be back for India some time in the very near future.’
   India’s first one-day international in the West Indies is on 18 May – and the tour goes into July.
   Tendulkar was in poor form with the bat in the recent home Tests against England, but Wallace said he had only ever been in discomfort when throwing.
   ‘His batting was not affected and most of the shoulder does not take too much of the force when bowling.
   ‘It’s a common injury in baseball pitchers and tennis players – anyone who is doing a lot of overhead throwing.
   ‘The rim of the socket had become a little bit frayed so the ball was sliding out the back of the joint a little bit.
   ‘It opened up a small tear in the labrum. A little bit of fluid was escaping through that tear and created a cyst. The main reason for operating was that the cyst was slowly enlarging so we felt it was timely to do it now before we felt there was any danger.’
   While under the knife, Tendulkar also had his left elbow examined – an older injury which is no longer troubling him. Wallace was happy with its condition.

The graphite bat favoured by Australian captain Ricky Ponting will be withdrawn from first class cricket by October, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Thursday.
   Six weeks after the product was scrapped from international cricket, Australian manufacturer Kookaburra has agreed voluntarily to withdraw its graphite-reinforced bat from all first-class cricket by October 1.
   ‘Kookaburra’s proposal has been supported by the ICC member countries who have agreed to allow the use of the bats at levels below first-class domestic competition for the duration of the natural lifespan of the bats,’ the ICC said in a statement.
   The decision was reached after the ICC received advice from the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) that the bat contravened Law 6 of the game’s rules and, in the MCC’s view, was illegal.
   The manufacturer will end production and distribution of the controversial bats.
   The bat was launched in December 2004 and had been regularly used by Australia’s Justin Langer and Damien Martyn, and Sri Lanka’s Sanath Jayasuriya.

India’s cricket board aims to rake in $200 million by playing some home matches in neutral venues over the next five years, including North America, a top Indian board official said on Friday.
   The board has invited bids for global media rights for all matches India will play on neutral grounds (belonging to non-ICC member countries) for a period of five years.
   ‘The main objective ... is to take the game to the expats, who otherwise only get to watch matches on TV,’ board vice-president Lalit Modi told Reuters.
   ‘We have identified eight markets, among them the United States, Canada, Middle East, Hong Kong, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur,’ said Modi, who is also chairman of the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s marketing sub-committee.
   India have recently signed a four-year agreement with private airline Air Sahara for $69.6 million and agreed the sale of global telecast rights for international and domestic matches in India for a period of four years for $612 million.
   India are to play two one-dayers against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi on April 18 and 19 to raise funds for the victims of the October 2005 Kashmir earthquake.
   Modi said the cricket boards of India and Pakistan have agreed on a 50-50 profit sharing ratio on the second match. The proceeds from the first match are to be donated to the quake relief fund of both countries.
   He said the two boards together have paid the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council $1 million to host the two-day tournament.

Former England captain Tony Greig has accused the Australians of the worst sledging he has come across during the second Test at Durban earlier this week.
   ‘I have never heard anything like it,’ Greig told a lunch at a Johannesburg cricket club on Wednesday. ‘I thought it might have something to do with the fact that we had a very, very good stump mic. We turned that stump mic up and we could hear every word out in the centre and it was unbelievable. It really was absolutely unbelievable. The Aussies love it.’
   ‘The whole thing is getting out of hand,’ Greig continued. ‘The time has seriously come for the authorities in the game to start to rethink the question of what players are allowed to say on the field.’ He added that the broadcasters had to turn down the volume on the stump microphones after concerns about what was being said.

South Africa (140/4) against Australia at tea, day 1
   Australia paceman Stuart Clark took two wickets to reduce South Africa to 140 for four on the first day of the third and final Test on Friday.
   South Africa won the toss and chose to bat. Ashwell Prince was 23 not out at tea with Jacques Rudolph on 12. Australia are 2-0 up in the series.
   Brett Lee and Clark, who two for 38 from 16 overs, shared the new ball and they found their line and length immediately.
   South Africa struggled to get going, and their first run was scored in the fifth over when AB de Villiers drove a ball from Lee for a single.
   The first boundary followed in the 10th over when Herschelle Gibbs, opening in place of injured captain Graeme Smith, drove Clark handsomely through the covers.
   South Africa’s troubles started four overs later when De Villiers lifted a drive off Clark and was neatly caught low down by Damien Martyn at cover for 12.
   Three overs later the home side were reduced to 38 for two when Gibbs left a delivery from fast bowler Michael Kasprowicz and was bowled for 16.
   Jacques Kallis and Boeta Dippenaar batted solidly for the rest of the morning session to nurse South Africa to lunch on 67 for two.
   They were separated in the 10th over after lunch when Dippenaar, who hit seven fours in his 32, drove expansively at a delivery from Clark and was caught behind by wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist to end a partnership of 59.
   Lee bowled Kallis for 37 with an inswinger that nipped through the gate, reducing South Africa 106 for four in the ninth over before tea.
   Kallis was captaining South Africa in the absence of Smith, who withdrew from the match with a finger injury. Dippenaar replaced Smith in the team.

An alliance of health groups urged World Cup organisers on Friday to ban smoking at the 12 stadiums to be used during the June 9-July 9 tournament.
   The UICC Global Smokefree Partnership, a grouping including Cancer Research UK and the American Cancer Society, made the plea at a conference in Nuremberg, one of the World Cup’s host cities.
   ‘Tobacco and sports don’t mix,’ said Professor Gerhard Sybrecht, deputy chairman of the German Lung Foundation.
   ‘That should also hold true for Germany, yet images of smoking will be exported into billions of homes and on to countless big screens around the globe.’
   Smoking was banned in stadiums at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan and will be again in South Africa in 2010. Germany has decided not to introduce a similar rule, although smoking will be discouraged.
   ‘We will have publicity in the stadiums urging people not to smoke,’ a spokesman for the local organising committee said on Friday. ‘Our position is obviously that we would prefer people not to smoke but smoking in Germany is not banned in restaurants or other public places, unlike in some other countries.’

England’s World Cup training pitch in Germany will be ripped up and re-laid with new turf after a Football Association inspection found the original surface sub-standard on Thursday.
   Adrian Bevington, communications director of the FA, told Reuters that England’s campaign needed top quality conditions which the sportsground pitch at Buhle near Baden Baden failed to reach.
   ‘Following an inspection of the training ground today, which included Wembley groundsman Steve Welch, the decision has been taken that the pitch will have to be returfed which will commence on May 1,’ said Bevington.
   ‘All will be ready and in mint condition for when the England team take part in their first training session on June 6.
   ‘It is vital we give Sven and the team the best possible facilities throughout the tournament and clearly the training pitch is an integral part of that.’
   Bevington said the hard winter experienced in central Germany – ’they have only just been able to clear the pitch of snow in the past few weeks’– had caused the problems.
   World Cup organisers and governing body FIFA are responsible for top-quality facilities for each of the 32 teams competing in the tournament.

Former Brazil striker Romario will join United States club Miami FC for a six-month loan, his present club Vasco da Gama said on Thursday.
   The 40-year-old striker, who claims to have scored 964 goals, stood with his arms folded and refused to comment as Vasco president Eurico Miranda made the announcement during a media conference.
   ‘Romario will return to the club after this period to take part in the Brazilian championship and, after that, we will discuss whether he will end his career or keep playing,’ said the cigar-smoking Miranda.
   Romario, top scorer in last year’s Brazilian championship with 22 goals, had failed to turn up for training with Vasco during the previous two weeks.
   Before that, he had bitterly criticised his team mates in a 2-0 defeat by Cabofriense and said they had made ‘schoolboy errors’.
   Miami FC are not involved in the MLS, the main US soccer championship, taking part instead in the less prestigious United Soccer Leagues (USL). Brazilian media have widely questioned the total of 964, saying it includes youth team matches, reserve team matches and training sessions billed as friendlies.
   Miami FC are due to play 28 games during the regular USL season, giving Romario an excellent chance to boost his total.
   ‘When Romario scores 35 goals, he must stop,’ said Miranda. ‘I’m sure that Romario’s 1,000th goal will be scored wearing a Vasco shirt here at Sao Januario.’

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger on Friday commited his long-term future to the English Premiership side amid speculation linking him with the vacant manager’s job at Real Madrid.
   Wenger, whose side beat Juventus 2-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday, has been named by Real Madrid president Fernando Martin as one of seven managers the Spanish side are considering.
   But the 56-year-old Frenchman told the Evening Standard: ‘If I left I would feel a deserter - like the guy who walks away from the army once there is a war. I am highly committed to this club.
   ‘I love what I do here and love the spirit of the team. I feel committed to the players and the club.’

Sri Lanka A team took a 98-run lead on the first inning against Bangladesh A as the four-day match between the two sides is heading towards a draw at the Bogra Shaheed Chandu Stadium.
   After the third day’s play on Friday, the visitors stretched their overall lead to 149 after scoring 51-3 in their second innings. Mashrfaee bin Murtaza and Tapash Baishya scalped one wicket each for the hosts while the in-form skipper of the visiting side Jehan Mubarak was run out.
   Earlier, Saqib Al Hasan made a fine 85 to help the hosts pile up 368 runs in the first innings before being all out in 123 overs. In his defiant knock the talented U-19 batsman faced 173 balls and clouted nine boundaries. U-19 captain and wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim also scored 50 runs with four fours and a six. Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath grabbed four wickets for 83 runs.

After scoring nearly 1000 runs in the National Cricket League discarded batsman Ehsanul Huq finally won the heart of the national selectors as he has been included in the 13-member Bangladesh A team for one-day series against Sri Lanka A.
   Ehsanul, who led Chittagong Division in the league, finished as the top batsman amassing 955 runs in the first-class competition. Hasibul Hossain, who took highest 57 wickets in the league, however, found no room in the second string national team.
   Bangladesh A team will play three one-day matches against the visitors with the first at Bogra on April 4. The other two matches will be held in Khulna on April 6 and 8.
   Bangladesh A team: Tushar Imran (captain), Nazmus Sadat, Mehrab Hossain, Nazimuddin, Saqib Al Hasan, Mahmuddullah Riad, Farhad Reza, Sagir Hossain Pavel, Md Sharif, Shafaque Al Jabir, Nadif Chowdhury, Nazmul Hossain and Eshanul Huq Shezan.

Left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori has won the New Zealand Cricketer of the Year award for the second year running.
   Vettori took 19 Test wickets at an average of 17.47, and 23 wickets in one-day internationals at rate of 3.87. He also hit the Black Caps’s fastest Test 100 against Zimbabwe and averaged 51.2 in Tests in the past 12 months.
   Nathan Astle, twice dropped from the New Zealand team in the past season, was named best one-day international batsman with an average of 45. Despite injuries, Shane Bond was the best one-day bowler with 36 wickets at an average of 18.11.
   Discarded international opener Matthew Sinclair was New Zealand’s best first-class batsman with 848 runs at an average of 53.
   Chris Martin the best first-class bowler with 50 wickets at 23.98.

England captain David Beckham says that the constant upheavals at Real Madrid have not deterred him from his desire to finish his career at the club.
   The midfielder has also denied that his future is dependent on the possible appointment of England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson as the Premira Liga club’s new coach.
    ‘To be honest I want to sort my contract out anyway whether Eriksson comes or whether he doesn’t, whoever comes,’ Beckham told a news briefing. ‘I’ve said I want to stay in Madrid and I want to stay playing here.’
   Beckham, whose contract expires in 2007, said he was keen to thrash out a new deal with Real as soon as possible but recognised that the constant changes in personnel at the club made negotiations difficult.
   ‘There will be a set of talks maybe in the next few weeks, but there have been changes at the club,’ he said.
   ‘Every time you go to sort something out something else changes but I’ve got used to that now to be honest. I still go to the president.
   ‘Maybe it would be a good thing if it gets sorted before the World Cup.
   ‘But even if it didn’t, I wouldn’t go into the World Cup worried about my future to be honest. One way or another it will get sorted out.’
   Florentino Perez, the man who brought Beckham to the Bernabeu from Manchester United in 2003, quit as club president last month and his successor Fernando Martin has said he is looking for a new coach to take charge next season.
   Martin says he has targeted seven candidates for the post, including Eriksson who will leave his post as England manager after the World Cup.
   Jose Mourinho, Rafa Benitez, Arsene Wenger, Fabio Capello, Carlo Ancelotti and Marcello Lippi were the other big-name coaches named by Martin. None have expressed public interest in the post.
   Beckham, who will turn 31 in May, insisted that the only reason he would not extend his contract would be if the club wanted to sell him.
   ‘I’ve been here for three years and had five different managers and two presidents and I know things change very quickly at this club,’ said Beckham.
   ‘Only if the club said they didn’t want me (would I leave) and they have not said that. They are very keen on getting these talks under way.
   ‘At the end of the day I love playing for Real Madrid, I’m happy here and I don’t want to move my family about any more.
   ‘The kids are happy and my wife is happy. We’ve just got a new house. There is no reason to go anywhere else.’

Soccer ace Ruud van Nistelrooy is to become a dad.
   The Manchester United striker and wife Leontien are expecting their first baby in six months.
   The news comes a year after the Dutch couple suffered the secret heartache of losing an unborn child.
   Thursday a United source said, ‘Leontien is three months pregnant – and she and Ruud are delighted.
   ‘But they’re very private people and don’t want to make a song and dance. They have only told close friends and family.
   ‘They’re not the types for publicity and showbiz life.’
   The news comes a day after Ruud, 29, scored the winning goal against West Ham in his first start for six games.
   He and childhood sweetheart Leontien, 25, have been trying to start a family since tying the knot in July 2004 at a village church in Geffen, Holland.
   Sir Alex Ferguson was the only United guest at the ceremony.
   The source added, ‘It’s suddenly come right for Ruud. He was relegated to sub for five games and everyone was asking if he had a future at Old Trafford.
   ‘Then he gets this great news about becoming a dad, wins his place back, captains them and scores the winner against West Ham.’
   Former economics student Leontien and Ruud, who met at a dance when they were teenagers, live in Cheshire.
   Before his 2001 move to United she told how they had no desire to become football’s next Posh and Becks.
   Stunning Leontien said, ‘We have a bond going back as teenagers – and that is between the two of us and not for everyone else to see.
   ‘I am 100 per cent behind Ruud
   and proud of him, but I want to stay out of the limelight and have my own life.’

Sven-Goran Eriksson will begin talks with Real Madrid today.
   A representative of the La Liga giants flew into London on Thursday in a bid to lure the England coach to the Spanish capital.
   Eriksson is now favourite to get the job after AC Milan told Real their boss Carlo Ancelotti was going nowhere.
   The Swede, who will quit England after the World Cup, will jump at the chance to manage Real, with David Beckham having already given him a glowing endorsement.
   The representative, who arrived at Heathrow Airport last night, is a close friend of the Real board and a long-time associate of Eriksson.
   And he is confident of persuading Eriksson to become boss.
   Real are hoping to have an agreement next week.

The FA will ask potential England bosses if they will keep David Beckham as skipper – because sponsors want to know.
   England chiefs are searching for a major new backer to step in after this summer’s World Cup.
   The deal could be worth £25 million and Beckham is the image sponsors all over the world associate with England.
   However, the successor to Sven-Goran Eriksson may want a new man to wear the armband, which will be a big headache for Soho Square bosses.
   Now the FA team, led by chief executive Brian Barwick, will quiz any candidates involved in the second round of interviews on whether they want Beckham or a change in command.
   Any candidate who decides he wants a new skipper is a brave man.
   Beckham, who insists he wants to stay at Real Madrid even if England win the World Cup, is keen to keep the captaincy.
   And his high profile would take a major hit – as would the FA coffers.
   It would also be a blow to Beckham’s management company 19, who have taken over the running of the entire England squad’s commercial contracts.

The new Wembley will not host its first football match until 2007, nine months after this year’s FA Cup final was due to be played in the 757-million-pound ($1.3 billion) new stadium, the English Football Association confirmed on Friday.
   Three England matches and the traditional curtain-raiser to the English football season, the Community Shield match between the Premiership and FA Cup winners, will now be switched to alternative venues.
   Rugby League’s Challenge Cup final, due to be played on August 26, has also been moved. The match, for which more than 30,000 tickets have already been sold, will now be played at Twickenham, the London home of English rugby union.
   The announcements followed confirmation by the builders of the new stadium, Australian firm Multiplex, that work on the new stadium will continue over the summer.
   Construction had initially been due to finish at the end of last year, in plenty of time to allow the stadium to host the FA Cup final on May 13.
   That objective was abandoned last month and, in a statement on Friday, the FA said it had become clear that Wembley was ‘significantly behind schedule.’
   ‘We do not want to set deadlines on when the stadium will open and be faced with the constant speculation surrounding this as we approach individual fixtures,’ a spokesman said.
   ‘Therefore, we believe it is important that we are transparent with our plans. The FA is taking the prudent measure of booking new venues for all of our fixtures until the year end.’
   The football matches concerned are the Community Shield (August 13), a friendly international (August 16) and Euro 2008 qualifiers against Andorra (September 2) and Macedonia (October 7).
   The fresh delay means that the new Wembley’s first match is likely to be an international friendly in February between England and opposition who have yet to be confirmed.
   In a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange earlier on Friday, Multiplex said building work on the new stadium would not be ‘substantially’ completed until the end of June and that commissioning and cleaning work would continue after that date.

Barcelona may be runaway leaders of the Spanish first division but that does not make today’s derby against their bitter rival Real Madrid any less interesting.
   Real lie second, 11 points adrift of Barca, but after their 4-0 thrashing of Deportivo La Coruna their confidence has risen despite some unimpressive outings in the preceding weeks.
   ‘This game is going to be revenge for the pain they caused when they beat us 3-0 in the Santiago Bernabeu stadium earlier this season,’ said Real goalkeeper Iker Casillas in an unusually bullish statement on Wednesday.
   ‘If we lose, it will mean that Barca are practically champions. But if we win it will be a great feat, almost like being champions, and give us a big advantage over all the clubs fighting for second place,’ added Casillas.
   Barca know that the Real players will come to the Nou Camp in a different mood to any other game.
   ‘Madrid is always Madrid and they will be ready for us. On their night they can score five easily, but if we play how we know we can play then we are invincible,’ said the Spanish first division’s leading scorer Samuel Eto’o.
   ‘I don’t fear Madrid but I do respect them. The same as any other previous year,’ added Eto’o, who was discovered by Real and who subsequently tried to lure him back when he moved from Real Mallorca in the summer of 2004.
   Barca’s recent form has slipped if they are to be judged by their successive 0-0 draws in the last week against bottom club Malaga in La Liga and Benfica in the Champions League.
   ‘I think we’ve been playing well but perhaps a little less spectacularly than before. But if we beat Madrid we can be champions in three weeks,’ added Barca’s Portuguese winger Deco.
   The big question is whether Barca coach Frank Rijkaard will rest any of his stars, such as Eto’o or Ronaldinho, ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League quarterfinal second leg against Benfica.
   ‘The most important game is not Madrid but Benfica. We can win the league without beating Madrid but we have to beat Benfica to win the Champions League,’ admitted Deco, perhaps echoing the thoughts of his boss.
   The thoughtful Rijkaard when he arrived at the club three years ago, no doubt wondered, like many people, why two clubs separated by nearly 700 kilometres should have generated one of the world’s most famous rivalries.
   The answer lies in recent Spanish history.
   In the early years, records and newspapers show there was little antagonism between the clubs. However, divisions became apparent when Alfonso XIII gave Madrid the royal seal of approval in 1920.
   The independence-minded Catalans resented the favouritism shown by the unpopular monarch and the split became complete when the dictator Francisco Franco backed Real in the wake of him winning the Spanish Civil War in 1939.
   Franco – ironically, no great football fan who briefly insisted that Madrid remove Real from their club name – also found it convenient to be associated with Madrid, especially during their glory years of the late 1950s when they won five consecutive European Cups.
   By contrast, Catalonia’s language and culture was suppressed under Franco until his death in 1975 and, for years, the only place where Catalan could be openly spoken was at Barcelona matches.

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has an enviable selection dilemma for Saturday’s trip to Bolton Wanderers where victory would keep the Reds hanging on to the coat tails of Chelsea.
   Ruud van Nistelrooy returned to the starting line-up on Wednesday after more than a month in exile on the bench and celebrated by scoring his 20th goal of the season in the 1-0 defeat of West Ham, United’s seventh straight league win.
   Now Ferguson must decide whether to retain the 29-year-old Dutchman alongside Wayne Rooney, or re-instate Frenchman Louis Saha whose goals have kept Van Nistelrooy out of the side.
   Juggling strikers is something Ferguson has done in the past, most notably when they won the treble in 1999 with Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer proving a potent mixture.
   Whoever he plays, Fergsuon knows victory at Bolton is vital in United’s attempt to narrow the nine-point gap on champions Chelsea and keep comfortably ahead of third-placed Liverpool.
   ‘I have a job picking my team for a massive game at Bolton on Saturday, although that is what I’m paid to do,’ Ferguson told United’s website.
   ‘When we were at our very best, we had four great strikers. It was certainly one of the factors in us winning the Treble,’ added Ferguson who also has high hopes for young American-born forward Giuseppe Rossi.
   Seventh-placed Bolton suffered a setback to their Champions League aspirations with a 4-3 defeat at Middlesbrough on Sunday and they have never beaten United at home in the Premier League.
   A long-overdue victory would put them right back in the mix for a top-four finish, especially as they have two games in hand over most of their rivals.
   Chelsea’s relentless march towards a second successive title is unlikely to falter at Birmingham City on Saturday and the battle for fourth place, and a slot in the qualifiers for next season’s Champions League, is hotting up.
   Arsenal, buoyant after their superb 2-0 victory over Juventus in the first leg of a Champions League quarterfinal on Tuesday, are at home to an Aston Villa side still not safe from relegation. The Gunners have not lost the fixture since 1993.

Arsenal striker Thierry Henry has insisted his club future will be resolved before the World Cup finals get underway in Germany in June.
   The 28-year-old France international has been repeatedly linked with a move to Spanish giants Barcelona although Arsenal are keen to keep the keystone of their attack at Highbury.
   ‘At the end of the season we are going to have to take a decision. It will be done before the World Cup, that’s for sure,’ Henry, who scored the North London club’s second goal in their 2-0 midweek Champions League quarter-final first leg win at home to Juventus, said Friday.
   And he insisted that financial considerations would not be a factor in whether he stayed or moved.
   ‘People were talking about money, but I think people should know by now I am not someone who thinks about the money before the game,’ he added.
   ‘That is why, when I talked about sporting ambitions, I was talking about the pitch and nothing else,’ Henry also told Arsenal TV Online.
   In the meantime he stressed that the speculation over his future was not affecting his performance.
   ‘People wonder whether it does disturb me, but I said so many times when you look at my performances on the pitch for my club that should be an answer to all these kind of questions.
   ‘We are talking with the board and with Arsenal at the moment about the contract situation. But there are so many things at stake that we should talk about.
   ‘My main concern right now is to finish in the top four - because it’s vital for the club and anything that is going to happen at the club next, and to concentrate on winning the Champions League.
   ‘That is where my focus is right now, because if you start to think of (contract talks) over what you should be thinking about on the pitch then it can disturb you. But it hasn’t.’
   Arsenal are currently five points shy of fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur but do have a game in hand over their North London rivals.
   However, Henry admitted that with planning his future had been made more difficult by there being so many unresolved factors in Arsenal’s season.
   ‘If we were maybe like Chelsea - 20 (sic) points ahead and in the semi-final of the FA Cup, and already out of the Champions League - maybe you can start to think about stuff,’ he added.
   ‘We are not in that situation, and I cannot afford to keep my foot off the pedal and think about other stuff when my team needs me to be focused on what we’re doing right now - trying to get in the top four and maybe, finally, getting our hands on that (Champions League) trophy.’

Chelsea have already started organising their Premiership victory parade – but could end up with egg on their faces.
   The league leaders are so confident of being the ‘Special Ones’ again they have been planning the open-top bus trip for months.
   Chelsea representatives have already had two meetings with council leaders to discuss the parade route.
   Club sources say the Blues have pencilled in two possible dates – May 14 and May 21 – with the later date set aside in case Jose Mourinho’s team reach the FA Cup final in Cardiff.
   Police have also been informed about the plans and transport chiefs have been warned bus routes will need to be redirected.
   It is believed Chelsea began plotting the public celebration at Christmas, but their indifferent form and Manchester United’s resurgence means they could yet be caught out.
   A club insider said, ‘The team has been so far ahead in the league all season that it made sense to organise things early.
   ‘But there have been a few nervous faces around the club in recent weeks after the blip in form.
   ‘Other clubs will see this as another example of Chelsea being arrogant, and they have a point.
   ‘The word is, even if Chelsea don’t win anything, Jose Mourinho will still want a parade through the streets.’
   Rob Mansfield, a spokesman for Hammersmith and Fulham Council, confirmed meetings with Chelsea had taken place.
   He said, ‘We have already had two meetings with Chelsea to discuss the details of the parade. Basically they are saying it’s going to happen, but a definite date will not be set until after the FA Cup semifinals. That way, Chelsea will know if it needs to be before or after the Cup Final.’
   Last season Mourinho predicted at Christmas that Chelsea would win the title at Bolton on April 30, which they did with a 2-0 victory.
   This year he has already been caught out because at the start of February he targeted April 9 as the day for the Blues to lift the Premiership trophy again. At the time they were 15 points clear of Manchester United while Liverpool trailed them by 21.
   Mourinho said, ‘We have the second Premiership in our hands, we cannot lose it. When we get eight wins, we will be champions.’
   But in the next match Chelsea travelled to Middlesbrough and lost 3-0, his worst result since taking charge of the club. They have subsequently gone out of the Champions League and also lost 1-0 at Fulham.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has claimed his side still harbour hopes of confounding the bookmakers and pipping Chelsea to the Premiership title.
   No side has won more Premiership points than United in 2006 and after another win on Wednesday - a 1-0 defeat of West Ham - Ferguson believes The Blues’ nine-point lead may not be as insurmountable as it would appear.
   Ferguson’s side have recorded six successive victories and The Red Devils’ form has been in stark contrast to the stuttering performances of Chelsea in recent weeks.
   With just seven matches of the season remaining United may have already missed the boat in a bid for the title, nevertheless Ferguson believes his side could still have put a few doubts in the minds of the Chelsea team.
   ‘I hope they’re thinking about us. If they do slip up then we have to make sure that we are there to take advantage,’ said Ferguson.
   ‘We’ve improved and I’m very happy with the nature of our play. You never know what could yet happen. Given the form we’re in we’re looking forward to all our games.’

Diving, theatrical rolling around after a minor foul and brandishing of imaginary cards are increasingly commonplace antics marring many top class games.
   Even a practice that was originally intended to encourage sportsmanship like kicking the ball out of play when someone is injured has become corrupted as players feign injury in order to waste time or stop the game when opponents are on the attack.
   But fans, football authorities, the media and many players are raising their voices against such underhand tactics and complaining that the outcome of vital matches is being decided more by the ability to mislead the referee than by individual footballing skill.
   In short, there is too little drama and too much theatre in the modern game.
   ‘Faking it, feigning it, exaggerating – whatever you call it, it is cheating, full stop,’ former England striker Jimmy Greaves told British daily The Sun this week.
   ‘The ref always gets a hammering but it is the players who have made his job so much harder. Players have such a total lack of respect for each other that they are happy to get each other sent off by cheating.’
   Attitudes to such behaviour do, of course, differ according to different football cultures.
   In Spain for example, diving is often seen as evidence of a player being ‘listo’ (streetwise or smart) by showing he can outwit both the opposition and the referee.
   Appealing for cards is routine behaviour, gilding the lily after seemingly innocuous fouls and the corralling of referees by players are accepted parts of the spectacle.
   But it is increasingly recognised that such behaviour can incite fans and contribute to the sort of crowd problems that have marred Spanish football in recent seasons.
   In many countries fans are becoming increasingly disenchanted with the sort of sophisticated gamesmanship that has taken the shine off many matches.
   But realistically what can be done to combat the problem?
   Some commentators have called for an immediate sending off if a player is spotted taking a plunge, while former England captain Gary Lineker has suggested the introduction of pink cards for so-called cheating offences with two cards resulting in dismissal.
   An immediate red card seems to be a sledgehammer approach to the problem and would require a major change to the laws of the game. In any case, referees already have the power to book players who dive.
   The only innovative aspect of Lineker’s idea is the colour of the card. He seems to believe the stigma of picking up ‘pink’ cards may provide a disincentive to such behaviour.
   One answer might be a rugby-style sin-bin. Losing your leading striker for 10 minutes would certainly provide a strong deterrent against diving without having to resort to the extreme of a permanent dismissal.
   However, the very nature of diving makes it extremely difficult for a referee to spot the offence in the heat of the moment.
   Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes that retrospective bans would put an end to the problem.
   ‘It is the only way you can get it out,’ he said. ‘Once the guy knows he might be punished he will not dive.’
   English FA chief Brian Barwick echoed the sentiment when he said, ‘We are in on-going discussion with FIFA on retrospective disciplinary action and have raised diving as a priority area where video evidence could be used.’
   The advantage of such an approach is that television replays could be used at leisure after the game to decide if there was a clear-cut example of diving and a suitable sanction could then be decided upon.
   The system could also be used to clear defenders who had been wrongly booked or sent off as a result of such incidents, allowing for the withdrawal of cards or the overturning of bans.
   The game’s governing bodies are reluctant to use video evidence during matches, but when every top flight game is recorded from almost every conceivable angle it should be possible to use it afterwards.
   Rugby regularly uses such an approach to punish illegal or dangerous play, so why can it not work in football?
   An even more effective answer might be found in the groundswell of opinion that has built up against such practices.
   The fact that sportswear giant Nike is basing its latest advertising campaign on the idea of fair play is ample proof that there is a demand for a ‘cleaner’ game.

Manchester United will play Celtic in Roy Keane’s testimonial match at Old Trafford on Tuesday May 9, it was announced Thursday.
   A testimonial or benefit match formed part of the deal which saw Keane leave United in November after 12 years with the Red Devils before he joined Glasgow giants and Scottish champions-elect Celtic.
   ‘This is something that we wanted to do this season as Roy started the season with us,’ said United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
   ‘The supporters want to recognise the unbelievable contribution and success he had with Manchester United.
   ‘He was a fantastic player and captain for me and I hope he gets the proper send-off he truly deserves. It will be a fantastic night for everyone.’
   Keane won seven Premiership titles and four FA Cups in the course of 480 appearances for United.
   Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell added, ‘Celtic FC is delighted to play in Roy Keane’s testimonial match at Old Trafford.
   ‘Roy was a magnificent servant to Manchester United for 12 years and I am sure he will forever be regarded as one of their greatest ever players. Clearly we are delighted to now have Roy here at Celtic.
   ‘I am sure the atmosphere will be electric on the evening and it will be a fantastic occasion for fans of both teams, paying tribute to one of the greatest ever players to play the game.’
   Keane, who has in the past criticised the practice of wealthy players accepting testimonial matches, is now expected to donate most of the proceeds to charity and has already said he will release 1,000 free tickets to United supporters’ groups and Manchester schools.
   Republic of Ireland midfielder Keane, 34, is currently out of action after sustaining a hamstring injury in Celtic’s 3-0 Scottish League Cup Final win over Dunfermline earlier this month.

Two-thirds of Scottish football fans will support England at the World Cup finals in Germany, dispelling the stereotype they will cheer on their southern neighbour’s opponents, a survey showed Friday.
   Nonetheless, around a quarter of Scots, whose country did not qualify for the tournament, still hope their old rivals, the ‘Auld Enemy,’ will lose, according to the survey for the BBC by ICM.
   Overall, some 67 per cent said they wanted coach Sven-Goran Eriksson’s England side to triumph, the survey showed.
   The number of Scots who would back England in a World Cup final varied marginally according to the opponent.
   If England played Germany, 69 per cent of Scots would cheer for the players south of the border but the number dropped to 65 per cent if England faced Brazil in the final stage, the survey showed.
   Scots were also pleased that London has been chosen to play host to the 2012 Olympics. Ironically, the number was even higher than that in London itself.
   Three out of four Scots were happy that the British capital would stage the event in six years’ time, compared with 71 per cent of those living in the host city.
   But Scottish nationalist sentiments surged again when it came to Scottish Olympic athletes competing for the British team.
   More than two fifths – 43 per cent of people north of the border – wanted separate home nation teams as in the Commonwealth Games, or as in sports like football and rugby.
   Across the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 74 per cent of those surveyed supported a single British team.
   ICM interviewed a random sample of 2,367 adults aged over 18 by telephone between March 24 and 28.