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Australia’s hopes of defending their World Cup cricket crown suffered a huge blow with the official withdrawal of pace spearhead Brett Lee Friday.
   On the back of five straight one-day defeats, Australia will leave for the West Indies next week minus their strike bowler and amid mounting concern over whether they can successfully defend their title.
   Lee’s pull-out with damaged ligaments in his left ankle is a shattering blow for the Australians, whose World Cup-strength bowling attack was plundered by New Zealand in the recent 3-0 Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series loss.
   Stuart Clark, who was a controversial omission from the original 15-man squad named last week, is Lee’s replacement.
   Australian team doctor Trefor James said following a review by an orthopaedic specialist it was decided that Lee’s damaged ankle ligaments would keep him out of cricket for two to three months.
   Lee had been optimistic of making a miraculous recovery after going over on his ankle in training ahead of the first Chappell-Hadlee Trophy match in Wellington.
   ‘To get told that you can’t be a chance to play in the World Cup is really disappointing,’ Lee told reporters Friday.
   ‘I couldn’t undergo the exercises, there’s too much pain there. There was absolutely no chance of me playing in the World Cup.’
   Chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch said in a Cricket Australia statement Friday that he had been advised that Lee’s ankle injury was more serious than first expected.
   ‘It is a great disappointment for Brett Lee that he is unable to take his place in the Cricket World Cup and is a significant blow for the planning and preparation in place for the tournament,’ Hilditch said in the CA statement.
   ‘However, it does give a tremendous opportunity for Stuart Clark to join the 15-man squad.
   ‘Stuart was extremely unlucky to miss out on initial selection and despite the unfortunate circumstances surrounding his inclusion we strongly believe that Stuart is primed to seize his opportunity.
   ‘Though Brett’s injury is disappointing from a personal and team perspective, we strongly believe we are taking a squad of players more than capable of winning a third successive Cricket World Cup.
   ‘Every other nation would take heart from what has happened over the last couple of weeks. But who knows? We won’t know until the end of the World Cup how it affects us,’ Hilditch said.
   ‘The bowling group are obviously a bit down in confidence at the moment. The big key for the World Cup is to get that back up to the levels that it can be.’
   Lee sent Clark a text message Friday wishing him good luck for the tournament.
   ‘It’s really disappointing for Brett, because he’s a friend in the team and a friend outside of the team as well,’ Clark told reporters.
   ‘It’s hollow, but I’m still excited about going to the World Cup.’

Sri Lankan spin king Muttiah Muralitharan believes the 1996 World Cup winning team was better than the side which is about to challenge for the 2007 version in the Caribbean.
   Murali insists that the team which was led by Arjuna Ranatunga to a shock victory 11 years ago was a stronger batting unit, blessed with a series of experienced attacking players.
   ‘Some experts are tipping us to surprise a few at the World Cup and maybe even win it. I think we have a good chance but I still believe the Sri Lanka team of 1996 was better,’ said the 34-year-old whose haul of 432 one-day victims makes him a key player ahead of the competition.
   ‘When we won the World Cup in 1996, batting-wise the team was more experienced, had flair, everything was there in that team in 1996.
   ‘This team now has a better bowling attack than what we had that time but we had a better balance in the 1996 World Cup because there were four spinners in the side and only two fast bowlers,’ the off-spinner told www.bigstarcricket.com.
   Despite his incredible international record, Muralitharan believes spinners will struggle to make an impression in the Caribbean where Sri Lanka have been drawn in Group B along with India, Bangladesh and Bermuda.
   ‘The rules have changed now with the 20-over power plays coming so the spinners go out of the game, you can’t play two or three spinners any more,’ he said.
   ‘We have only one spinner at the moment, so fast bowlers have more chance (of success) because they bowl in the power play.’

The Bangladesh cricket team is starting to settle down in Antigua. The squad arrived in St. John’s early morning Bangladesh time on Wednesday and has started training at full swing already.
   ‘We arrived here in the afternoon on Tuesday and the players had full rest that day. There was a bit of beach-volleyball played the next morning at the hotel’s beach and then we went for cricket training in the afternoon,’ informed Tigers’ assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin while speaking over telephone.
   ‘The training ground is about 40 minutes away from the hotel. In the afternoon there is a strength training session at the hotel’s gym,’ added Salahuddin.
   Bangladesh are the first team outside the Caribbean region to fly in for the World Cup. They play a warm-up tri-series in Antigua against World Cup qualifiers Bermuda and Canada before moving to Barbados for two official warm-ups against New Zealand and Scotland.

Eleven of Pakistan’s 15-man World Cup squad and seven reserves have passed pre-World Cup dope tests, an official said Friday.
   ‘We have received reports of the dope tests held last week and 18 players have cleared tests,’ Pakistan Cricket Board director of communication Ahsan Malik told AFP.
   He said results from captain Inzamam-ul-Haq and all-rounder Shahid Afridi, who were tested on Sunday and Friday respectively, will be received later.
   Fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif, who have both had doping bans controversially lifted, will be tested later this week, Ahsan said.
   Two players outside the five official reserves were also tested in case they were needed in an emergency, he added.
   Pakistan asked the World Anti-Doping Agency accredited laboratory in Malaysia to fast-track the test results so they can complete the process before leaving for the Caribbean on March 1.
   Officials here have said no player will play in the World Cup without passing the in-house tests.

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson says Lille will come to regret their near walk-off following the English side’s controversial winning goal in their Champions League tie on Tuesday.
   A quickly taken free-kick by Ryan Giggs on 82 minutes, while Lille were still organising their wall, was allowed to stand by referee Eric Braamhaar, sparking furious protests from the home players. United won the match 1-0.
   The Ligue 1 side have lodged a protest with UEFA and asked for the goal to be rescinded, with the governing body set to rule later on Friday.
   UEFA are also investigating the crowd problems with United unhappy at the treatment of some of their supporters who were caught up in a crush at the Felix Bollaert stadium.
   ‘I think we expected that (Lille protest),’ Ferguson told reporters. ‘They have got a serious problem because the players did try and walk off the pitch, there’s no question about it, and that was coming probably from the coach (Claude Puel).
   ‘And I think there will be regrets in that respect. To protest against losing a goal like that is unusual. There are many (disputed) occasions in football, whether the ball’s over the goalline or whether it’s a penalty, so therefore we complain and it’s natural to complain when you lose a goal in an important game but not to walk off the pitch.
   ‘That’s definitely unprecedented.’
   Ferguson, who stressed that the free kick had been taken within the laws of the game, expects the second leg at Old Trafford to go ahead as scheduled.
   ‘We expect to play in the second leg. We are preparing for that. Whatever UEFA decide to do we stand by it but at this moment in time we have date on March 7 against Lille,’ he added.
   United are not happy with how police and crowd control officials handled the situation and are collating information from supporters in that area of the ground, which included Ferguson’s son Mark and captain Gary Neville’s father Neville.
   ‘We are still getting a lot of reports in about that. I think the club are dealing with it the right way,’ Ferguson said.
   ‘My own son was in the crowd and Gary Neville’s father was in the crowd so there’s always that worry for their safety. It’s in UEFA’s hands but I think the club have dealt with it in the right way and I think we are confident about our situation.’

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has insisted he will never resign at Stamford Bridge.
   Speculation has been rife that the Portuguese boss will leave the champions in the summer, even though Chelsea are still competing for trophies on four fronts.
   Mourinho responded with bemusement to a question at the pre-Carling Cup final press conference when it was suggested the trophy could be his last as Blues chief.
   ‘The last?’ he answered. ‘Why?
   ‘Do you want to believe what you read or what I tell you?
   ‘I tell you there are only two ways for me to leave Chelsea. One way is in June, 2010, when I finish my contract. If the club doesn’t give me a new one, it’s the end of my contract and I’m out.
   ‘The second way is for Chelsea to sack me. There is not a third way - the manager decides to leave and walk away. No chance - I’d never do this to the Chelsea supporters.’ Mourinho has revealed that he expects John Terry to be in contention to return for the Premiership clash at Portsmouth next weekend.

Michael Carberry stroked a fine 70 to help England A take a 59-run lead against Bangladesh A on the second day of their four-day match at the Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Friday. The visitors scored 268-6 at the stumps.
   Will Jefferson, the 6ft 9in opener, scored 38 while his partner Nick Compton added 23. Skipper Michael Yardy chipped in with 34 before being run out by a direct throw from his counterpart Tushar Imran.
   Carberry then stamped his authority scoring 70 off 157 balls with seven fours and a six to pull the visitors out of the danger zone. Carberry and wicketkeeper Steve Davies put on 88 runs for the fourth wicket with Davies contributing 37.
   Matt Prior, who was trapped leg before by left-arm spinner Enamul Haque Jr, had a very short stay at the crease departing for three but Alex Loudon steadied the ship with a patient unbeaten 25. Tim Bresnan was the other not out batsman with 21 runs beside his name.
   Enamul grabbed two wickets for 67 runs while leg-spinner Mosharraf Hossain scalped two for 62. Bangladesh A were all out for 209 runs on the first day.

A pair of gloves worn by Sachin Tendulkar during the Multan Test in Pakistan in 2004 on Friday fetched Rs 1.11 lakh in an auction with the proceeds going for the treatment of an ailing soccer referee.
   Tendulkar, who could not make it to the function, organised by the Kolkata Sports Journalists’ Club, showed a noble gesture by sending in his gloves, which he had donned during an innings of 194 not out in Multan, for the auction.
   Bollywood superstar Mithun Chakrabarty came forward to conduct the auction by giving a starting bid of Rs 50,000. The bid price soon went into the six figures and finally was won by a city-based industrialist. The cheque was handed over to the wife of the ailing FIFA referee Pradip Nag.

The BEXIMCO Pharma U-19 Girls’ Handball Tournament got underway at the Dhanmondi Women’s Sports Complex with Aga Khan International School thrashing Sunnydale 10-0 in the inaugural match.
   However, Aga Khan School tasted a bitter defeat in their second match as Valkyries Skyliners outplayed them 12-2.
   Viqarunnisa Noon School registered the biggest victory of the day routing Valkyries Scyllas 15-1.
   Md Aminul Islam, the secretary of the National Sports Council, inaugurated the meet as the chief guest.
   Nabila Ahmed Tisha, the president of Verdandi and general secretary Sadia Hossain were also present on the occasion.

Chittagong and Khulna played out the whole day to force draws on the final day of their respective four-day matches against Dhaka and Barisal in the Ispahani Mirzapore Tea National Cricket League on Friday.
   Chittagong scored 229-6 in 78 overs after following on against Dhaka who scored 500 in their first innings. Chittagong’s first innings total was 289. Chasing a target of 379, Khulna finished on 226-5.
   Resuming on their precarious 6-2, Chittagong relied on Nafees Iqbal to play the anchor role. His 49 off 126 balls pulled his team out of the danger zone. Besides, Nazimuddin (53), skipper Ehsanul Huq’s unbeaten 63 and 32 from Dhiman Ghosh thwarted any hopes Dhaka had of achieving victory.
   Khulna’s fightback owed much to openers Imrul Kayes and Monirul Islam who put on 137 for the first wicket. Monirul fell one short of his fifty while Kayes chipped in with 83. Fahim Muntasir made 30 and Manzarul Islam added 22 as the Barisal bowlers failed to make any headway. Raisul Islam captured 2-8 and Tarikul Islam grabbed 2-73.

Female tennis stars hailed Thursday’s announcement that women would receive the same prize money as men at this year’s Wimbledon tennis championships after years of dogged campaigning.
   Wimbledon organisers relented on a long-standing point of principle and decided to offer equal prize money for the first time—triggering delight and relief among former Wimbledon ladies’ champions.
   Venus Williams, three times a Wimbledon singles winner, led the bandwagon of female tennis stars hammering on the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’s door demanding equal pay.
   The 2000, 2001 and 2005 champion had even said she would be prepared to play the best of five sets like the men rather than the best of three if that was what it would take to close the pay gap.
   ‘The greatest tennis tournament in the world has reached an even greater height today. I applaud today’s decision by Wimbledon, which recognises the value of women’s tennis,’ the American said.
   ‘The 2007 Championships will have even greater meaning and significance to me and my fellow players.’
   Reigning Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo hailed the decision which she believes will now put pressure on the French Open to follow suit.
   ‘My answer always is that it is a matter of principle - all over the world in different jobs women get paid less for the same work in many countries, than men, and that’s not really fair,’ said the Frenchwoman.
   ‘But with Wimbledon making this great decision and the right decision the French Open is under a lot of pressure. It may not happen this year, but definitely in 2008 they will have to do it.’
   World number one Maria Sharapova had also been outspoken in her demand for equal pay.
   The Russian star transformed herself into one of the highest-profile sportswomen in the world when she won the 2004 Wimbledon ladies’ singles.
   ‘Wimbledon has always been a leader in so many ways in the world of tennis.
   ‘This decision will only strengthen the bond between women players and one of the world’s great sporting events,’ the 19-year-old said.
   All England Club chairman Tim Phillips said Sharapova’s profile had been one of the factors the club’s committee took into account in making their historic decision to overturn more than a century of unequal pay.
   Wimbledon legend Billie-Jean King won 20 titles at the southwest London tournament and is a long-standing campaigner for equal standing for women.
   King thrashed Bobby Riggs 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in the famous ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match in 1973 after the 55-year-old former world number one claimed he could still easily beat the top female players of the day.
   She had slammed the three sets versus five sets argument, insisting: ‘Entertainers do not get paid by the hour.’
   ‘This news has been a long time coming and I am thrilled Wimbledon has joined the club of Grand Slam events offering equal prize money for men and women,’ American King said.
   ‘Wimbledon is one of the most respected events in all sports and now with women and men paid on an equal scale, it demonstrates to the rest of the world that this is the right thing to do for the sport, the tournament and the world.
   ‘Women’s tennis is the leader in women’s sports. Equal prize money is a no-brainer.’
   Larry Scott, the chief executive of the Women’s Tennis Association, last year blasted Wimbledon for its ‘Victorian’ attitude to equal pay.
   But he said Thursday’s announcement was a hugely important change.
   ‘This is an historic and defining moment for women in the sport of tennis, and a significant step forward for the equality of women in our society,’ he said.
   ‘We commend the leadership of Wimbledon for its decisive action in recognising the progress that women’s tennis has made.’
   Outspoken US tennis hero John McEnroe, thrice a Wimbledon men’s singles champion, also hailed the All England Club’s about-turn.
   ‘I think when you’ve got men and women playing at the same tournament, it is ludicrous to have a difference in pay,’ he told British newspaper The Daily Telegraph.
   ‘It would be setting an example to the rest of society in general to have equal prize money. There’s probably no other sport, and very few professions in this world, where a woman can earn as much as a man.’

Sanath Jayasuriya may be a balding, 37-years-old and about to play in his fifth World Cup, but he remains Sri Lanka’s most valuable asset in the Caribbean.
   The flamboyant left-handed opener starts the tournament in the form of his life after plundering scoring five centuries and plundering 1,153 runs at an average of 48.04 last year.
   Widely credited with having revolutionised the limited overs game with his aggressive ‘pinch-hitting’ in the 1996 World Cup, Jayasuriya gives Sri Lanka’s batting a dangerous destructive potential.
   His immense value to a strong Sri Lanka side is enhanced by his wily left-arm spin, which has claimed 285 wickets at 36.86 during a 379-match career.
   With pitches in the Caribbean expected to be slow in pace and receptive to spin, his left-armers are expected to play a crucial role in balancing the team and providing a dependable option during tense run chases.
   From humble beginnings (he is the son of a lowly paid urban councillor from the southern fishing town of Matara) his cricketing exploits have made him one of Sri Lanka’s most-loved celebrities.
   His face adorns advertising billboards throughout the island and his mass appeal has led some observers to predict he will pursue a career in politics when he finally retires.
   Some critics had written him off after multiple dislocations his shoulder in 2004 and 2005 forced him in and out of the side.
   But according to skipper Mahela Jayawardene he remains one of the fitTest members of the team.
   ‘Sanath had some injury problems but he has worked incredibly hard on his fitness and he travels to the World Cup in peak physical condition,’ Jayawardene said.
   ‘People keep talking about his age but he keeps performing and remains our most important match-winner.’
   Although there has been speculation that he will retire after the World Cup, pace bowler Chaminda Vaas believes Jayasuriya may play into his 40’s.
   ‘He is in such good shape that he can play on for another couple of years,’ Vaas told reporters.
   Jayasuriya is already the third highest run scorer in one-day international history with 15,538 runs at 32.87 including 23 centuries and 62 fifties.

Kumar Sangakkara is Sri Lanka’s leading all rounder, a student of law with a passion for literature, their best batsman and an inspirational wicketkeeper.
   The 29-year-old is in the prime of his career and he holds a key responsibility batting at number four, the old batting position of Aravinda de Silva.
   De Silva was Sri Lanka’s most prolific batsman when they won the World Cup in 1996 (448 runs at 89.60) and many believe Sangakkara is the man most likely to emulate his heroics.
   Sangakkara starts the tournament with 1,333 runs and 44.43 in 2006, more ODI runs than any other player in the world.
   Moreover, his mental resilience has enabled him to score many of those runs under extreme pressure. He will be relied upon to deliver when it matters most.
   ‘I am very clear about my role as a batsman in this team, I have to bat to the end of the innings whether we are batting first or chasing,’ he told Reuters.
   ‘We have some exciting and explosive players at the top of the order and some talent in the middle order, my job is to hold it all together by putting big scores on the board.’
   While Sangakkara holds a pivotal position in the batting order he also plays a crucial role in the field as the wicket-keeper and vice-captain.
   His presence balances the team, allowing enough room for a fifth specialist bowler or an extra batsman if conditions demand.
   ‘Kumar is an exceptional cricketer with a very strong mind,’ skipper Mahela Jayawardene told Reuters. ‘He is a very important part of our one-day side because he is a genuine all-rounder who could claim a place in the side as a specialist batsman or wicketkeeper.’
   Sangakkara is also renowned as a feisty competitor, a cricketer not afraid to speak his mind in the heat of battle, a trait that has led to him being labelled one of the games leading ‘sledgers’.
   Born in the hill station town of Kandy he was given a traditional English education at Trinity College, one of Sri Lanka’s oldest schools.
   He was also a brilliant tennis player, representing Sri Lanka schools, but opted instead for a career in cricket.
   Between tours he is studying to be a lawyer, like his father, and he also has a deep passion for literature, especially Oscar Wilde and classical Russian authors.
   Since making his debut in 2000 he has already played 189 matches scoring 5,476 runs at 36.26. He has claimed 166 catches and an astonishing 48 stumpings.

It seems the death of Filippo Raciti counted for nothing.
   Three weeks after the policeman’s murder by rampaging fans in Catania, Italy’s football clubs are being allowed to reopen their stadiums despite not fully complying with safety regulations, while their relationships with the ‘ultras’, or hard-core supporters, apparently remain strong as ever.
   This weekend also sees the return of evening matches with pleas by police to stick to afternoon kick-offs overidden by the demands of television companies.
   ‘We are all in pain, but the show must go on,’ said Italian football league president Antonio Matarrese shortly after domestic matches were suspended in the wake of the violence in Sicily.
   ‘This is one of Italy’s most important businesses and it has to continue. We have television contracts to honour.’
   Matarrese’s comments caused widespread outrage, but in the same week that Raciti’s funeral was broadcast live on state television, football in Italy resumed, albeit with many matches played behind closed doors.
   Interior Minister Giuliano Amato initially insisted stadiums not fully complying with the ‘Decreto Pisanu’—safety laws brought in two years ago but continually ignored by the clubs - would be forced to play their matches without spectators.
   But despite their so-called zero-tolerance policy, the government has allowed all except two Serie A stadiums to reopen - at Ascoli and Catania - even though many of them have not yet fallen into line with the law.
   Clubs with an adequate number of electronic turnstiles are now being allowed to open their gates to season-ticket holders, whether or not they have the required number of closed circuit television cameras or a crowd pre-filtering zone.
   ‘After saying they would adopt a hard line to combat the violence, the government are back-tracking, and almost all the stadiums are open again,’ Vittorio Feltri, editor of Italian newspaper Il Libero, told Radio Monte Carlo on Friday.
   ‘It will only be a matter of time before there is another death.’
   Another question being asked is whether more turnstiles would have prevented the violence in Catania. Raciti was killed away from the stadium when police came under attack from Catania fans armed with bricks, bottles, iron bars and even home-made bombs.
   The government also urged clubs to distance themselves from their ultras, but it seems some of them are unwilling to do so.
   According to a report in the Gazzetta dello Sport, Serie A club Roma gave all of their 1,500 tickets for their Champions League match away to Lyon on March 7 to the club’s ultra groups free of charge, the day before they were officially due to go on sale.
   Fans who turned up at the ticket outlets on the official selling day were allegedly threatened by ultras after complaining to Roma stewards.
   One ultra told the Gazzetta: ‘We in the ‘Curva’ (the enclosure where the hard-core fans congregate) have more rights than the others and that’s why we get to keep the tickets.’
   The Gazzetta said the ultras sold many of the tickets on to others, while some ended up on online auction website E-Bay with an asking price of 120 euros - three times their face value.
   Many laws in Italy are regarded as an infringement of liberty and ignored. How many more people have to die before Italian football turns the rhetoric into reality?

Frank Lampard has waited five long years to avenge defeat by Arsenal in Cardiff.
   Despite all Chelsea’s glory in the past two seasons, Lamps still smarts from the 2002 FA Cup final defeat.
   With Cardiff set to stage their last major domestic final before Wembley reopens for business, Lampard, 28, wants to sign off at the Millennium Stadium with victory.
   He told British press, ‘It’s five years since we lost that game and I haven’t forgotten.
   ‘It was a massive disappointment and still sticks in my memory. It was a big occasion and when you fight as hard to reach a final as we did and then lose it it’s disappointing.
   ‘But we’re a different club now, a different set of players.
   ‘Now we go there with a different mentality. We go there to win and hopefully we’ll do that and put it right.’
   Goals from Ray Parlour and Freddie Ljungberg sealed a 2-0 win for the Gunners.
   And Lampard knows the Blues will have to cope with loss of John Terry after the inspirational skipper damaged ankle ligaments in Porto on Wednesday night.
   Stand-in captain Lampard, Terry and Carlo Cudicini are the only survivors from the team.
   He added, ‘For John to miss the final is a real disappointment. We’ll try and deliver it for all of us – John as well. No one wants to lose a player of John’s calibre.
   ‘He’s a big player for us, your heart does sink, especially after losing him for so long and getting him back and then losing him again.
   ‘We’re a squad and I’m sure John will be there with us regardless and we’ll take it as a team if we can win it.
   ‘Me, John and Carlo are the only ones left from the last time we played against Arsenal in Cardiff. We span both eras at Chelsea.
   ‘But we were a team then which was just delighted to get to an FA Cup final.
   ‘Now it’s different expectations, and rightly so because of the injection of money we’ve had and because of the squad we have.
   ‘I think whatever team they put out we’ll have to treat them with full respect because we’ve seen them get good results at Liverpool and Tottenham.’

Italy striker Antonio Cassano has been included in the Real Madrid squad to visit city rivals Atletico Madrid in the Primera Liga today.
   Real coach Fabio Capello said earlier in the week the out-of-favour player would return because he had lost weight and been training well.
   Cassano, who made four starts early on in the season, has not played in the league since the 1-0 defeat at Getafe in October.
   He was fined and banned from training with the Real squad at the end of October after criticising Capello for his failure to play him in the first team.
   Although he resumed training with the rest of the squad the following month, he has not returned in the league and not made a squad since early January.
   Cassano has a fiery reputation and had run-ins with Capello when they were both at AS Roma.
   Defenders Sergio Ramos, Roberto Carlos and Raul Bravo were all left out with injuries.
   Capello also moved to quash further murmurs of dissent inside the Bernabeu on Thursday by denying that Brazilian midfielder Emerson had refused to play against Bayern Munich.
   Spain has already been gripped by one alleged refusal to take to the field as Barcelona coach Franck Rijkaard last week claimed that his star Cameroon forward Samuel Eto’o had refused to come on as a substitute – a charge Eto’o publicly denied.
   Now Capello has been forced into denying his player acted in such a way during Tuesday’s Champions League last-16 first leg tie.
   ‘Emerson did not refuse (to come on as a sub). That’s a lie. He did not tell me that he would not play,’ said Capello.
   ‘It was not an act of indiscipline. He is a player in our team and we can count on him.’
   Capello was speaking ahead of this weekend’s Madrid derby with Atletico. Cadena Ser radio station had said Wednesday on its internet site that Emerson had copied Eto’o.
   ‘There were 20 minutes to play when the Italian coach (Capello) asked Emerson to go and warm up.
   ‘But, taking a leaf out of Barcelona player Samuel Eto’o’s book, he refused and the cameras are our witness.’
   However, also on Wednesday, Real left back Roberto Carlos, another Brazilian, denied that his international colleague had refused to warm up.

Sourav Ganguly will have to play a big role as an opener to enable India win the Cricket World Cup in the West Indies beginning next month, former captain Sunil Gavaskar said in Kolkata on Thursday.
   ‘I wish Ganguly gets more success from the game. I wish you (Ganguly) succeed particularly in the next few weeks when India will depend on you for giving the kind of start they need to bring back the Cup,’ Gavaskar said at a book release function, where the left-hander was also present.
   ‘Bring the World Cup to the country where cricket is a great passion for crores of people. And, when you bring back the Cup, you will get the most enthralling reception in this city,’ Gavaskar told Ganguly on his comeback to the Indian team by bagging the man of the series award against the Sri Lankans.
   Gavaskar was here to release the book ‘Sourav Ganguly - The Maharaja of Cricket’ written by cricket journalist Debasish Datta.
   Terming it as a ‘magnificent book about a magnificent cricketer’, the cricketing legend said before Ganguly came onto the scene the passion for the game in Bengal seldom translated into players getting through to the national team.

Sri Lanka on Friday issued two commemorative World Cup stamps in a bid to boost its cricketers ahead of the tournament starting in the Caribbean next month.
   ‘What we are trying to do is to encourage the players. We don’t want to put any undue burdens, but just to show the players that the entire nation is behind them,’ Sports Minister Gamini Lokuge said.
   The diamond-shaped stamps, worth five rupees (0.05 cents) and 50 rupees (0.5 cents), have been issued by the Philatelic Bureau of the Department of Post and Telecommunications in collaboration with Sri Lanka Cricket.
   Former Sri Lanka captains Michael Tissera, Bandula Warnapura and Duleep Mendis were present when the stamps were issued by Postmaster General Shervin Senadira at Sri Lanka Cricket headquarters here.
   One million five-rupee stamps and 500,000 50-rupee stamps will soon be available.

South Africa captain Graeme Smith feels the team’s current world number one ranking will count for nothing when the World Cup starts on 13 March.
   South Africa have overtaken Australia as the leading one-day side after a series win against Pakistan and Australia’s slump in form.
   ‘Of course it’s nice to be number one and it is a reward for our good form.
   ‘But at the World Cup, it is necessary to maintain your best for more than a month,’ Smith said.
   South Africa and Australia will clash in the group stages on 24 March.
   Having comprehensively beaten India and Pakistan in home series, and seen Australia lose to England and
   New Zealand, the South Africans are highly fancied to win that game.
   ‘It is dangerous to predict you’ll win the World Cup, but we are confident,’ said Smith, whose team failed to reach the Super Six stage when they hosted the tournament four years ago.
   ‘Previous South African teams may have allowed
   too many expectations to be created but I don’t think it’s going to happen this time,’ he added.
   The skipper also believes Australia’s current losing run will not last long.
   ‘They have match-winners such as Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist who still have to return and will make a big difference. Their main problem is injuries and the way they solve that will probably determine their fate.’

Reports emanating from the Spanish press continue to intimate that Barcelona are eager to land Xabi Alonso in the close season.
   Despite still sitting atop of La Liga, all is not thought to be well at the reigning champions, with internal wrangling said to be at the root of a problem that has spread to a disenchanted dressing room.
   With the previously untouchable Ronaldinho the subject of fierce criticism and the futures of both manager Frank Rijkaard and star striker Samuel Eto’o seemingly up in the air, it could be an interesting pre-season that ensues.
   It has been suggested that there could be big changes at the Catalan giants in the summer and it is believed Liverpool star Alonso is a player the club want as the heartbeat of their midfield.
   Alonso has proved to be one of the Premiership’s more successful imports since arriving at Anfield from Real Sociedad and almost certainly, Rafa Benitez would be loath to sanction his departure.
   His existing contract runs until June 2009 and it seems likely any bids from Barca would be resisted, especially given the club’s healthy financial footing following the recent takeover.

Inter defender Marco Materazzi has slammed Fabio Capello for his recent criticism towards Italian football.
   The Real Madrid coach had declared that football in Italy was not as competitive, and therefore not as entertaining, as in England or Spain.
   But the World Cup winner has hit back at the tactician who left Juventus, following their demotion to Serie B, last summer.
   ‘I respect him because he is a great coach and he has won everything, but I don’t always like what he says,’ stated Materazzi.
   ‘As facts show, he was perhaps a little bit too hasty in abandoning ship.
   ‘It is easy for him now to say that Italian football isn’t great and isn’t competitive, seeing as he obtained most of his trophies here,’ added the Nerazzurro.
   ‘If Italian football isn’t at a certain level then it must mean that he isn’t really that good a coach.’

Roma captain Francesco Totti believes that they can still progress in the Champions League, despite being held to a goalless draw by Lyon.
   The Giallorossi hosted the French champions at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday, but were unable to take advantage of the home leg of the second round clash.
   ‘Qualification is still open – I believe a goalless draw is a good result and I think we can do well in Lyon,’ said Totti.
   ‘They are a strong side, but I think we were able to handle the difficult situations we faced in this match,’ continued Il Pupone, who admitted that winning the Champions League is his dream.
   ‘I have won the Scudetto and the World Cup, but I’m missing the Champions League, the Coppa Italia and finishing the season as the top scorer in Serie A.
   ‘Ever since I started playing football my main aim has been to win the Champions League,’ concluded Totti.
   Team-mate Simone Perrotta is also confident that Roma can do well in France, although he is aware that it will not be an easy task.
   ‘The first leg wasn’t a great match, with few shots, but they are a good team and we managed to balance out the game after the first 20 minutes in which we suffered,’ explained the World Cup winner.

Everton keeper Tim Howard has criticised Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s selection policy after sealing his move to Goodison Park.
   The USA international was an instant hit at Old Trafford, making the PFA Team of the Year in his first season, but was then rotated with Roy Carroll before Edwin van der Sar arrived at the club.
   Both Caroll and Howard were chopped and changed regularly, usually after making errors, and the American believes Ferguson should have handled the situation better.
   ‘I was disappointed in the season,’ he told The International Herald Tribune.
   ‘I think if you look back, if everyone was really truthful about the situation, that’s not really the way to handle it.
   ‘Pulling me, taking myself out, taking Roy Caroll out, it wasn’t good for Roy and it wasn’t good for me. It wasn’t good for the club was it?
   ‘When you look across the board at any goalkeeper in the Premiership, for those people who follow it closely enough, you’ll see every week there’s a goalkeeper who doesn’t play very well.
   ‘It doesn’t mean he gets taken out. You know what I mean? Because there are 38 games, 40 games, and it ebbs and flows. Sometimes you play really well. Other times, you don’t play really good. That was a tough way for things to be handled.’
   Howard is pleased to have sorted his future out during the season-long loan at Goodison Park and is targeting a World Cup spot in South Africa.
   ‘I think Everton were happy to have me stay,’ he added. ‘When they said they wanted to go forward, if they could get a deal done on a transfer fee, I said: “Sure, go ahead”.

Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti has hit back at claims the Serie A championship has been greatly devalued by the ‘Calciopoli’ match-fixing scandal.
   The scandal saw Juventus demoted and AC Milan given an eight-point penalty, leaving Inter in a far stronger position to retain the Scudetto.
   Inter, who face Catania on Sunday, have won their last 16 league matches, a Serie A record, and are 14 points clear at the top with 15 games to go.
   But their domestic domination counted for nothing on Wednesday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home to Valencia in the first leg their Champions League last-16 tie.
   The step up in class exposed some of the weaknesses Inter keep hidden in Serie A, but Moratti said it was wrong to suggest the title is a joke.
   ‘I don’t think it is right to compare Serie A to the Champions League to try and show the Italian championship as something to laugh about,’ he said.
   Inter will be without the support of their travelling fans for the second successive away fixture when they take on Catania behind closed doors.
   Catania have been banned from playing at their Massimino stadium following the crowd violence earlier this month, which resulted in the death of a police officer and led to the championship being temporarily suspended.
   The stadium will remain shut for the rest of the Serie A season and Catania must play all of their home matches at neutral grounds. Sunday’s match will take place on a neutral ground, at Cesena in northern Italy.
   Catania have slipped from fourth to seventh in recent weeks but still harbour hopes of claiming a place in Europe next season.
   Second-placed Roma, who were held to a 0-0 draw at home to French side Lyon in the Champions League on Wednesday, entertain Reggina, who have lost just one of their last six matches.
   AC Milan, who are in the best position of the three Italian clubs in the Champions League after coming away from Celtic with a 0-0 draw on Tuesday with the home leg at the San Siro to come, host Sampdoria on Sunday.
   Four wins and a draw in their last five matches have lifted Milan up to sixth place on 33 points, just two behind fourth-placed Empoli.
   Sampdoria, who have won their last two games, were rocked by the news on Wednesday that Francesco Flachi had tested positive for cocaine.
   The 31-year-old striker has been suspended and could face a ban of up to two years if a second test confirms he used a banned substance.

Arsene Wenger has dubbed his sensational Arsenal kids the X-Factor Academy.
   Wenger’s youngsters have been entrusted with taking on the might of Chelsea in Sunday’s Carling Cup final in Cardiff.
   And the Gunners’ boss has compared them to those seeking fame and fortune on the famous ITV talent show.
   Wenger has confessed to being a fan of Simon Cowell and his X-Factor programme and admires the determination of the wannabes who take their chances in front of TV’s Mr Nasty.
   His own kids will now be judged before the nation, with Wenger feeling they have earned his vote after doing all the hard work in getting to the final.
   While Thierry Henry, Jens Lehmann and William Gallas sit it out, the likes of Theo Walcott, Jeremie Aliadiere and Denilson will take centre-stage.
   Yet Wenger has complete faith his boys will match what is expected to be a full-strength Chelsea.
   He told The Sun, ‘You have singers going on X-Factor, where talents are discovered which nobody knew about.
   ‘I like it because it shows people who are brave enough to come out and who want to achieve something in their lives. They have a target.
   ‘People who turn up and are ready to fight for something, like our young players, I like. Ours is the X-Factor Academy!’
    Wenger’s back-up squad has been outstanding. They beat West Brom, Everton and Liverpool away before overcoming local rivals Tottenham in the two-legged semi.
   The youngsters have had a little help from experienced men such as Julio Baptista, who has put himself on the map in this competition.
   But, by and large, it has been a triumph for youth.
   Wenger added, ‘People say never judge a manager or a team on a cup run, because it depends who you play. But in this cup competition, we have played Everton, Liverpool and Tottenham. So it would be a great reward for us to win it.
   ‘Hopefully, we will play with complete freedom and as well as we can. Then it will be very difficult for them.
   ‘We battled very hard to be in this final and it would be a reward for this team, which has come up to every challenge. It was not easy.’
   Wenger claims he was not the least tempted to boost his side with more senior figures.
   He declared, ‘There was not the slightest temptation. I have full confidence in these players. I’m very proud of what they achieved. We have not just won, we’ve won with style, which is our philosophy.’
   Asked if he was worried they might get a serious thumping, Wenger admitted, ‘That can happen with any team. It’s always a risk.
   ‘But you believe in your players or you don’t. I have 100 per cent belief in this team and I’m confident they will prove me right on Sunday.
   ‘A final is a good challenge to show your mental strength.
   ‘If you want to play for Arsenal and say you cannot play in a final at 19 or 20, then you have a problem.
   ‘I like to work with the young boys and make them grow. They have developed much quicker than I expected. They have a good opportunity to show me they are ahead of the planned schedule.
   ‘The game of Chelsea is based on experience and power. Ours will be based on mobility and movement.
   ‘It will be very important for us to try to stop them in decisive moments in the game by taking over that physical power.’

Craig Bellamy believes that far from destroying Anfield morale, his golf club antics inspired Liverpool to one of their greatest ever performances.
   The Liverpool striker was vilified for his part in boozy events during last week’s Algarve training camp that saw him threaten to batter team-mate John Arne Riise with a seven iron.
   But he believes the Anfield squad is too quiet, and after the 2-1 win at European champions Barcelona where he and Riise were on the score-sheet, he argued the rowdy get-together strengthened team spirit and brought the players out of themselves.
    ‘It sounds mad, and you guys can write what you want, but the whole thing pulled us closer together,’ the Wales international told the Daily Mirror.
   ‘It’s a quiet group and, laugh-wise, this was probably the best week we’ve had together. We went away and had a good laugh, and got close together.
   ‘Maybe because we had Barca coming up we knew we had to be closer and work together because of the attack they had, so it was perfect really.
   ‘It’s done, and we got a great result, and now we have to move on.
   ‘We don’t have to talk about what happened any more, let’s talk about a job half done. We’ve produced a great performance on a great night for the club, and we have shown that if anything we have come together, and shown great spirit.’
   Events in the run-up to the Champions League clash led to many critics suggesting Bellamy should be shown the door for his outrageous threats to a team-mate.
   He has shrugged off the controversy and said, ‘It has been my best week in football. A club in turmoil?
   We’ve had a decent week!
   ‘We were all looking forward to this game and nothing could spoil that. This is how it happens for me.
   It’s not been a problem for me. This was probably the best moment I have had in my life.’
   An unrepentant Bellamy did not share manager Rafa Benitez’s view that his men owed him an inspired display to make up for the trouble in Portugal. ‘I don’t think I really owed Liverpool a performance,’ he said. ‘I owed my son Ellis one as it was his 10th birthday and I wanted to do something special for him.
   ‘It was all built up to be something, but I didn’t see it that way. All I saw was the Nou Camp and the incredible atmosphere. It was the first time I’ve played there, and that was something to me.
   ‘If anyone scored that was supposed to be the deal – that they would do the golf shot. I was supposed to do it immediately when I did score but it was one of those “Was it in or wasn’t it?” So I had to wait a bit.
   ‘It was supposed to show that even though people said we’re a club in turmoil, in fact, we’ve had a decent week.’
   Riise also played down the incident and believes Benitez can again take Liverpool to European glory.
   ‘For me we have the best manager tactically,’ he said.
   ‘No one expected us to play the way we did in the Nou Camp with the players we did.
   ‘That shows how special he is.
   ‘We had some difficulties before this game but put it behind us and worked hard.’

Javier Mascherano has vowed to make the most of his Premiership second chance at Liverpool after escaping the nightmare of his five month spell at West Ham.
   Argentina midfielder Mascherano, 22, could make his Reds debut against Sheffield United at Anfield today after finally having his switch from Upton Park rubber-stamped earlier this week.
   The 2006 World Cup star made just five Premiership appearances for the Hammers after arriving in a blaze of publicity from Brazilian club Corinthians alongside Argentina team-mate Carlos Tevez last August.
   That move proved to be a disaster as West Ham sacked boss Alan Pardew and dropped into the relegation zone, but Mascherano has now been given the chance to prove himself with Champions League giants Liverpool.
   And with boss Rafa Benitez expected to rotate his squad for the visit of Neil Warnock’s team following the midweek victory against Barcelona, Mascherano admits he is determined not to blow his Anfield chance if he gets the nod against the Blades.
   Mascherano said, ‘From not being taken into account at West Ham, I’m now in a team that is at the top and that plays in the Champions League.
   ‘I am aware that this is an important step in my life and that my career will depend on what happens at Liverpool, so this is an opportunity that I won’t waste.
   ‘It was very useful for me to speak with Rafa Benitez. He showed a great deal of interest in the way I play and that was very good to me because it made me feel confident.
   ‘After three months without playing, a call from my new coach saying that he trusted me was the best thing that could happen to me. That’s what I needed.
   ‘There are amazing players at Liverpool, like Steven Gerrard, and that is why there is going to be great competition in order to play as a starter.
   ‘I know that I’ll have to be in a very good shape, but that doesn’t scare me.
   ‘I don’t know if I could describe my experience at West Ham as a nightmare, but the truth is that during those five months I wasn’t doing well. I hope that from now on things will be different.’

Inter will reportedly sell Adriano at the end of the season after growing tired of his late-night partying.
   Numerous stories in Italy on Friday claim that Inter and Adriano have reached the point of no return after the latest bust-up between the club and player.
   The Brazilian had looked to be at his best once again after he ended a nine-month goal drought before the Christmas break, just weeks after the Nerazzurri gave him a week off to recuperate in his homeland.
   However, problems seem to have re-emerged between both parties after he was excluded from the Champions League clash with Valencia on Wednesday.
   ‘Adriano didn’t feature because he wasn’t 100 per cent fit,’ explained boss Roberto Mancini. ‘He was in no condition to play an entire game.’
   Whispers in Italy allege that the real reason behind his snubbing was because the former Parma youngster had not recovered from his 25th birthday celebrations three days earlier.
   Adriano is no stranger to this kind of Milan nightlife controversy, but Il Corriere dello Sport suggests that Inter have now had enough.
   Although chief Massimo Moratti denied that Adriano would be fined for his latest misdemeanour, the paper insists the international will be hit in the pocket.
   Now it is understood that Moratti is ready to sell the Emperor at the end of the season, possibly in a swap deal with Real Madrid’s Antonio Cassano.
   The Nerazzurri are also being linked with moves for Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United and Lionel Messi of Barcelona.

When cheeky Craig Bellamy took an imaginary golf swing after scoring a goal against Barcelona on Wednesday he evoked memories of other bizarre and noteworthy football celebrations.
   Footballers have never been lauded for their intelligence but they can distinguish themselves with their wit from time to time and Bellamy certainly did that.
   The build up to Liverpool’s Champions League last-16 first leg tie in the Nou Camp was dominated by reports of a boozy training camp bust-up between Bellamy and John Arne Riise.
   The Welshman allegedly attacked his Norwegian team-mate with a golf club – cue Wednesday’s golf swing celebration, a clear swipe at football journalists who milked the incident for all it was worth.
   Bellamy isn’t the only person to have taken things being said about him and worked them into a goal celebration.
   Robbie Fowler once got down on bended knee and pretended to sniff the white paint on a touchline after scoring a goal against Everton in his Liverpool days.
   It was a clear reaction to the taunts of Everton fans over false drug allegations.
   Fowler was also at the centre of another controversy, although this one not surrounding a goal celebration, when he brought rumours concerning former England left-back Graeme Le Saux’s sexual preferences onto the field of play.
   Married Le Saux had long suffered taunts about being gay and when the then Chelsea full-back lined up to take a free-kick against Liverpool, Fowler turned his back on Le Saux and pushed out his behind.
   Fowler was booked for that and Le Saux sought retribution in the form of a forearm smash that went unseen by the referee.
   Other less controversial goal celebrations included Argentine Facundo Sava, once of Fulham, who produced a mask from his sock after scoring goals for the west London outfit.
   There was no consequence to that, although the same could not be said of Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens who is well known for his bizarre touch-down celebrations.
   He has produced a marker pen to sign the ball he just carried over the touchline and has borrowed pom-poms off a cheerleader to help his post-score rituals.
   But most notoriously of all, when with the San Francisco 49ers, Owens celebrated a touchdown against Dallas by dancing on the Cowboys’ on-field logo and was promptly flattened by angry Dallas safety George Teague.
   Owens was banned for a week and fined a week’s wages for his stunt.
   Back to football and in the 2006 World Cup Ecuador’s Ivan Kaviedes donned a Spiderman mask after scoring against Costa Rica, a tribute to a former team-mate, nick-named Spiderman, who had died in a car accident.
   Meanwhile, Ghana defender John Pantsil enraged the Arab world by waving an Israeli flag after a victory over the Czech Republic.
   Pantsil plays for Israelis Hapoel Tel Aviv and wanted to thank their fans but the bizarre over-reaction from the
   Arab world forced Ghana’s government to issue a formal apology.

Juventus star Pavel Nedved claims he snubbed a big-money summer move to Premiership champions Chelsea, instead opting to stay with the Bianconeri and help them win back their place in Serie A.
   The Turin outfit were stripped of their title and relegated to Serie B for their part in the Calciopoli scandal which rocked Italy after their World Cup triumph last year, forcing the club to sell many of their best players.
   Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Patrick Vieira both moved to Internazionale, while Lilian Thuram and Gianluca Zambrotta headed to Barcelona and Emerson and Fabio Cannavaro left for Real Madrid.
   But Nedved decided to stay in northern Italy, despite overtures from the Premiership, from where the Czech legend revealed Chelsea were interested in him.
   ‘It’s true I would have earned a lot of money, (but) something didn’t convince me enough,’ Nedved told the Corriere Dello Sport.
   ‘I’m not regretting staying. On the contrary, I would never have forgiven myself for escaping.’
   Juventus’ push for immediate promotion back to the big time is well on course, despite the nine-point penalty Didier Deschamps’ side were handed, and they currently sit atop Serie B by two points.
   Nedved – along with other experienced players who also decided to stay, such as Alessandro Del Piero, Gigi Buffon, Mauro Camoranesi and David Trezeguet – has played a key role in the Old Lady’s form this season, but the 34-year-old refuses to commit to the future.
   ‘I have another year’s deal and I will surely honour that,’ he said. ‘Then I’ll decide if I will continue, but I won’t make predictions.
   ‘I’ve already been close to hanging up my boots a couple of times, but it’s better to live day by day.
   ‘Serie A is our aim, because unfortunately there are no others. I think we will achieve this, otherwise it will be a huge disappointment.’

Gianluigi Buffon has stated that talks over his future with Juventus are still ongoing –
   and revealed why he would have to think twice before joining Inter.
   The goalkeeper remained with the demoted Old Lady in the summer, but may quit the outfit in June if the
   club fail to build a competitive side on their likely return to Serie A.
   ‘I still haven’t taken any decision and I am currently speaking with the club,’ said Buffon to Juventus Channel.
   ‘My main concern now is to focus on the present, in order to return to Serie A as soon as possible. I am proud to be a Juventino, but you never know what can happen in life.’
   The World Cup winner has been linked with moves to Milan and Inter, even if a switch to the latter may be problematic.
   ‘I can’t say that I will never join the Nerazzurri as it would be offensive towards the Inter players, management and fans,’ he added.
   ‘However, I know that my supporters would not like to see me with that team. Fans stop me along the road and tell me that I can go anywhere, except Inter…’
   Buffon again admitted that had Calciopoli not erupted, he would have probably left Juventus after five seasons with the club.
   ‘I was ready to go before Calciopoli, then I found myself in Serie B and I didn’t feel that I needed new motivation anymore,’ said the goalkeeper, who is contracted to the Bianconeri until 2011.
   ‘I stayed for the club but for myself as well, behaving correctly makes you stronger and I wouldn’t change my decision.
   ‘I am sure that the club is working hard to build a competitive side, although it isn’t easy to sign great champions.
   ‘However, I’m 29, I play for the national team and this is the peak of my career.
   ‘It is logical for me to aim at prestigious results that I believe I deserve,’ concluded the former Parma man.

Pakistan cricket authorities made clear Friday that Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif will not travel to the Caribbean for the World Cup if they fail to take a dope test.
   Pakistan completed tests on 13 of its 15-man squad and five reserves this week but Akhtar and Asif have yet to feature, raising media speculation they might skip the event starting on March 13.
   ‘Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Naseem Ashraf has a zero tolerance on the use of banned substances so any member of the team going for the World Cup has to pass the screening, the in-house dope testing,’ PCB director operations Salim Altaf told AFP.
   ‘The chairman has directed that nobody can go on the tour if this screening is not done.’
   Akhtar was banned for two years and Asif for one year in November after they tested positive for the steroid nandrolone.
   But the new-ball pair’s bans were controversially overturned by a PCB appellate committee in December, on the grounds they did not take the banned substance knowingly.
   Experts have warned that Akhtar and Asif may still have banned substances in their systems after testing positive last year and face life bans if they test positive again.
   Altaf brushed aside speculation over the dope tests on Akhtar and Asif.
   ‘Everybody will feature otherwise nobody can go and that is the instruction of the chairman and we hope all speculations die down after this,’ said Altaf, a former fast bowler.
   He also rejected suggestions the PCB was risking life bans for the pair if they test positive a second time.
   ‘If they failed tests which took place in September 2006 and this is now February 2007, the process is the same for everybody,’ he said.
   Akhtar said he still hopes to be fit for World Cup despite battling to recover from knee and hamstring problems.
   ‘I am going for another reassessment of my knee and hamstring injury in England later this week and only after that I am able to know about my chances of playing in the World Cup,’ Akhtar told AFP.
   Asked when he was due to appear for testing, Akhtar refused to comment and said his first priority was to get over his injury.
   ‘Right now I want my injury to heal and only after that I am going to think about anything else,’ said the 31-year-old, who joined Pakistan’s tune-up camp in Lahore on Friday but only took part in exercises.
   ‘My chances of playing in the World Cup are 50-50 and I will take a final decision only after having a reassessment of the knee. The doctor has stopped me from bowling until February 27,’ he added. Asif meanwhile also had an assessment in England last week after a recurrence of an elbow injury before returning home on Wednesday.
   ‘Both Akhtar and Asif are consulting the specialist over their injuries and once these problems are overcome they will feature in the tests,’ said Altaf.
   Another paceman, Umar Gul, featured in the training camp and said Friday he ‘felt great’ after recovering from an ankle injury sustained on Pakistan’s tour of South Africa last month.
   Altaf said all the squad members will have to pass fitness tests as well.
   ‘Before the departure of the team to the Caribbean all 15 players are going to subjected to a fitness test by a medical panel of the PCB,’ said Altaf.
   Meanwhile, Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer said he has faith in his side’s World Cup chances even if his strike bowlers, Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif, have to sit out the tournament.
   The duo, though, turned up for the training camp today and are expected to make a trip to England in the next few days, to get a scan of their injuries.
   ‘Shoaib and Asif are our main strike bowlers and it would be a big blow for us if they don’t play,’ he told The News. ‘But it isn’t right to say that we are incapable of doing well without them. Pakistan has done well and won matches in the past when Shoaib couldn’t play due to injury or other reasons and when Asif had not even started his international career.’
   Woolmer maintained Pakistan were still a competitive side in the absence of the duo, and stressed on the role of the batsmen: ‘We are not a bad side even if you take Shoaib and Asif out of the equation. Ours will still be a good side, capable of delivering good results. One of the best ways to win (one-day games) is to score runs,’ he said. ‘We have a good batting order and I believe there are bowlers in the team capable of defending any decent score’.
   ‘I believe fitness and injuries are two different issues. Speaking of my team, the fitness aspect is fine but there are some injury problems,’ he added. ‘Umar Gul looks fine, Asif seems okay. It’s just Shoaib.’

Spanish league leaders Barcelona will be looking to avoid a third consecutive defeat when they travel to struggling Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
   ‘We know we lost to Valencia (last Sunday) and now Liverpool, that’s the reality, but we now have to keep on working, trying to improve,’ said Barca coach Frank Rijkaard after their shock Champions League defeat to the Englishmen.
   The Catalan club are still in pole position as they bid for their third straight La Liga crown but a recent rocky run of form has meant they are top from Sevilla on goal difference.
   ‘Perhaps we are getting too predictable,’ said Barca’s Mexican defender Rafa Marquez.
   ‘Teams have learnt how to play against us, and how to contain Ronaldinho better, although they usually have to commit fouls to do it.
   ‘The team is aware of this and we are working on some new plays or changing our positions.’
   Liverpool coach Rafa Benitez admitted that one of the few moments he was worried during Wednesday’s win was when Rijkaard moved Barca’s Argentine teenager wonderkid Lionel Messi to the left wing from the opposite flank.
   Messi, having played 90 minutes without any reaction against English Premiership side, is now set to start his first domestic league game since he sustained a broken foot in November.
   Rijkaard will have to replace the suspended Deco and Gianluca Zambrotta from the team which started against Liverpool, so there are likely to be recalls for Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Andres Iniesta.
   The necessity to secure three points in Bilbao may also force Rijkaard to gamble on bringing back Samuel Eto’o into the squad despite last season’s top-scorer in the Spanish first division still insisting that he is not 100 per cent fit.
   Athletic Bilbao coach Mane Esnal probably wishes he had Rijkaard’s problems though as the Basque side are just one place above the relegation zone.
   The Bilbao players are also concerned about the fact that they could face the Barca backlash after their two important defeats.
   ‘They will be coming out and looking to get back their confidence against us. We know they are outstanding professionals and they will be looking to forget the Liverppol defeat with a good performance,’ reflected Athletic’s Javi Casas.
   Second-placed Sevilla have a tricky trip to Getafe on Sunday, where both Valencia and Real Madrid have lost this season.
   Coach Juande Ramos left out Fredi Kanoute, Adriano and Javi Navarro from the Sevilla squad that faced Steaua Bucharest in the UEFA Cup on Thursday in order to have some of his best men available for the anticipated battle.
   However, Sevilla will be without Daniel Alves and Jose Luis Marti in Madrid’s southern suburbs as both players are suspended.
   Real Madrid are four points in arrears of the leading pair in fourth place, just behind Valencia on goal difference, and have the derby match at local neighbours and rivals Atletico ahead of them on Sunday.
   David Beckham will not make the short trip across the Spanish capital as he is suspended after getting sent off against Real Betis last Saturday.
   In the wake of a good performance in Real’s 3-2 win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday, Beckham’s absence is a blow to the Spanish giant’s under-fire coach Fabio Capello.
   ‘We are arriving at the derby in good shape. We had a good game (against Bayern) and the last two results have been very positive,’ said Capello.

The Spanish press on Friday raised the alarm over the expanding waistline of Barcelona’s Brazilian star Ronaldinho who has been under-form this season.
   Sports daily AS published two contrasting photos of the bare-chested midfielder taken four years apart on its front page under the headline: ‘Ronaldinho loses his figure’.
   The photo on the left depicted a muscular Ronaldinho and was taken after Barcelona’s 3-3 draw against Real Sociedad in November 2003 while the one on the right, taken after the club’s 2-1 Champions League loss to Liverpool on Wednesday, shows his more plump recent state.
   The Catalan daily El Periodico published similar contrasting photos on its front page and blamed the 2004 and 2005 World Player of the Year’s recent slump in form on his weight gain.
   ‘He has lost his explosiveness and velocity,’ it said in an article on the player’s physical state, before adding the 26-year-old was ‘worn out’.
   The papers compared Ronaldinho’s situation to that of his fellow Brazilian international Ronaldo, whom Real Madrid sold to AC Milan at the end of January after weight issues faded his star power.
   Barcelona’s medical department refused to talk about Ronaldinho’s weight but AS reported the player has admitted he has a problem, having reportedly told close friends, ‘I am not well.’
   An active social life, personal problems, too many advertising commitments and unhappiness over his contract still not being renewed beyond 2010 when it expires were all cited by the press as possible reasons for Ronaldinho’s weight gain.
   Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard defended the player last month after AS reported that the Catalan club were thinking of selling the Brazilian striker.
   ‘Ronaldinho is a key player. Ronaldinho is also part of the team and we have to look at that (issue) together,’ he said, referring to the player’s recent underperformance.
   ‘Leave us in peace to carry on working, I have confidence in everything he’s done and I’m sure he will return to what he was,’ he added.

Real Madrid midfielder David Beckham has become unwittingly involved in regional Swiss politics after his photo was used to promote the election campaign of a former professional referee-turned politician.
   The photo, carried by several Swiss newspapers last week, shows the former England captain shaking hands with Philippe Leuba ahead of a 2005 friendly between England and Argentina.
    Leuba is standing in local government elections in the western Swiss region of Vaud and a thought bubble placed next to Beckham in the photo has the player supposedly wishing: ‘I hope you are just as impartial in the state parliament as you were on the football pitch.’
   Beckham’s management said on Thursday they had already taken steps to prevent further distribution of the campaign photo.
   ‘The individual in question did not seek approval with regards to the use of David’s image and our lawyers have been in contact to see that the image is taken out of circulation,’ Beckham’s spokesman Simon Oliveira said.
   Shortly afterwards, Leuba, 41, said there were no plans to reuse the image and that he himself had never authorised the campaign.
   ‘It was just a joke, a surprise that a friend arranged for me in the newspapers,’ Leuba told Reuters.
   ‘I got a mail from Beckham’s lawyers which I have passed on to the advertising agency involved but the whole thing is finished anyway.
   ‘It was never part of my official campaign and I think it’s amazing that it has got so much attention. I don’t think anybody in Switzerland would really have thought that David Beckham was supporting my campaign or even knew anything about it.’

With Chelsea otherwise engaged by the small matter of a League Cup final this weekend, Manchester United can edge another step closer to reclaiming the Premiership title by beating Fulham today.
   Victory for Sir Alex Ferguson’s side in the lunchtime clash at Craven Cottage would extend their lead over their London rivals to nine points.
   And with Chelsea set to be without captain John Terry for several weeks at least, three points would inevitably further cut the odds on the Scot picking up the ninth title of his reign at Old Trafford.
   ‘It’s knock-down time now – as every week goes by we get another game knocked out the road and eventually your opponents run out of games,’ Ferguson said.
   ‘With the confidence and ability the players are showing, there is no reason why we can’t go on and win it.’
   Fulham, who conceded four goals in the first 20 minutes when they visited Old Trafford earlier in the season, will be without Italian striker Vincenzo Montella, who is suspended after being sent off last weekend in the FA Cup defeat by Spurs, a match in which the Cottagers also conceded four.
   After the high of their victory over Barcelona in the Nou Camp in midweek, the visit of Sheffield United to Anfield presents Liverpool with a more humdrum challenge as Rafael Benitez’s side seek to consolidate their grip on third place.
   With Momo Sissoko having been stretchered off in Barcelona, Benitez is expected to hand a Liverpool debut to Argentina World Cup star Javier Mascherano.
   Liverpool’s Spanish manager will be wary of Neil Warnock’s Sheffield United, who have already claimed Arsenal’s scalp this season and are close to securing their Premiership status in their first season back in the top flight.
   The same cannot be said of Watford but the Premiership’s bottom side are unbeaten in their last three matches and remain hopeful they can make up the seven points that separate them from Wigan, the team currently occupying 17th place, the last survival spot.
   With Everton the visitors to Vicarage Road on Saturday, manager Adrian Boothroyd has told his players they have to stop feeling sorry for themselves.
   ‘We should have beaten Wigan in midweek after they went down to ten (men) but I’m still positive and I believe the table will look different at the end of the season. I’ve told the players to stop sulking.’
   Charlton and West Ham, who are both one point above Watford, meet in a clash that will see current Hammers boss Alan Curbishley return to the club that he established as a Premiership force over the course of 15 years at the Valley.
   ‘We are in desperate need of a win and we’re hoping it will come on Saturday,’ the Hammers boss said ahead of his head-to-head with Alan Pardew, who took over at Charlton after being sacked to make way for Curbishley at Upton Park.
   With the relegation battle now looking like it will be played out between the bottom four clubs, Wigan entertain Newcastle on Sunday.
   Portsmouth are at Blackburn later the same day while Tottenham’s claims to be worthy of a place in the top five will be put to the test when Martin Jol’s side entertain Bolton, who currently sit 5th in the league.

Arsene Wenger has upped the ante ahead of Sunday’s Carling Cup final by undermining Jose Mourinho’s claims to be ‘The Special One’.
   The Chelsea boss conferred the title on himself after leading Porto to UEFA Champions League glory in 2004, but his Arsenal rival Wenger has now insisted that winning the title does not necessarily guarantee ‘great’ status.
   The two managers have experienced a frosty relationship ever since Mourinho’s arrival at Stamford Bridge, and with just days to go before the two teams face off at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, another war of words has seemingly erupted.
   The Blues boss – who once incurred the threat of legal action after branding Wenger ‘a voyeur’ – provoked the latest spat by questioning Wenger’s credentials due to the Frenchman’s failure to
   win Europe’s biggest competition.
   However, the Gunners boss has now hit back – without mentioning his rival by name – by stating that consistent success over a long period of time is a more relevant marker of greatness.
   ‘Plenty of managers have won the Champions League who will not be considered great managers,’ said Wenger.
   ‘What is important is that you look at their careers in 10, 15 or 20 years. What kind of quality have you brought through in your work and on how consistent a level have you done it?
   ‘If you would like to compare every manager you give each one the same amount of resources and say “you have that for five years”. After five years you see who has done the most.
   ‘We played a whole season unbeaten in 2004-05 but you did not see me jumping on the tables every week. Winning the Champions League will not change my life.’
   Wenger has previously angered the Blues with his references to the perceived ‘financial doping’ brought on by Roman Abramovich’s arrival, and the latest spat should set the scene for a spiky affair on Sunday as the two capital rivals go head-to-head.
   However, the Arsenal boss insists he is not consumed by comparisons with Mourinho – who he has failed to beat so far in English football.
   ‘I enjoy what I do,’ he said. ‘My obsession is not to be compared.
   ‘I have an honest commitment everywhere and after that whether people judge me to be great or small, half great or half small, is down to them.’

Nine of next Wednesday’s Italian first division games will kick-off at 1400GMT rather than at 1930GMT in an attempt to reduce the threat of crowd trouble.
   The decision was taken by Italy’s interior ministry as part of the crackdown on football hooliganism following the death of a policeman during violence in Sicily earlier this month.
   The only match starting at 1930GMT next Wednesday is Inter Milan at home to Udinese, which is considered a low-risk game.
   Twelve more Italian stadiums will be reopened to the public this weekend after their grounds came into line with security measures.
   The only Serie A match being played behind closed doors this weekend is Catania against Udinese. The game is also being played at a neutral ground, in Cesena.
   Catania have been banned from playing at their Massimino stadium for the rest of the season as punishment for the ugly scenes before, during and after their derby match against Sicilian rivals Palermo on February 2.
   They must also play their ‘home games’ at neutral stadiums.
   Three Serie A matches – Cagliari v Lazio, Messina v Siena and Roma v Reggina – will be open to spectators without restrictions as their stadiums fully comply with security regulations.
   Only season ticket-holders will be allowed into the other six Serie A matches.
   In the Italian second division, only two of the 11 matches will be played behind closed doors.

Manchester United legend Gary Pallister has added his voice to the growing clamour for David Beckham to be restored to the England squad.
   Pally, who played more than 300 games for United, said, ‘The fact is we still need David in the team.
   ‘He is a quality player who has shown he definitely still has what it takes to play at the top level, so Steve McClaren should bring him back in from the cold.
   ‘I couldn’t understand why McClaren left him out anyway.
   ‘People talked about David having a poor World Cup but he scored and created goals. Tell me who has been doing that among the people who have tried to replace him?
   ‘David’s experience would be invaluable in the Euro 2008 qualifiers because we suddenly find ourselves under a lot of pressure.
   ‘But experience isn’t enough if you can’t cut it – and I have absolutely no doubts about David on that score.’
   Boss McClaren will travel to check on Becks for the first time since dropping him when he goes to watch Bayern Munich host Real in the Champions League on March 7.
   McClaren will also be able to check on Bayern midfielder Owen Hargreaves.

Fergie’s gone
all English
Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted he would love an all-Premiership Champions League final – so long as his Manchester United side are involved. United and Liverpool are closing in on a place in the last eight after impressive away wins over Lille and Barcelona respectively in the first leg of their last-16 ties. And with Chelsea and Arsenal also in with a good shout, Ferguson believes there is a real chance of two English sides contesting the May 23 final in Athens. ‘I’d love an all-English final,’ Ferguson told the Daily Mirror. ‘Just as long as we are involved in it. The competition is very open this season. There’s not one team you could look at and say, “They’re the favourites this season”.’
— New Age Desk

Laporta
remains upbeat
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has insisted his side are good enough to come back from a goal down and progress into the Champions League quarter-finals. The defending European champions will head to Anfield on March 6 hoping to turn around a 2-1 deficit after crashing to defeat against Liverpool at the Camp Nou in the first leg on Wednesday. But Laporta believes the Catalans have what it takes, despite the stiff challenge ahead. ‘I am convinced our team will be in Athens for the final,’ he said. ‘Barca’s team is good enough to win at Anfield and negotiate this round. I am very confident. The two goals we conceded were a bit strange as we were very much in control,’ Laporta continued. ‘This defeat was an accident. I am certain our players will respond. We have time to prepare ourselves to face Liverpool.’
— New Age Desk

Vieira doubtful for Valencia match
Inter Milan’s dynamic French midfielder Patrick Vieira is very doubtful for their crucial Champions League last-16, second leg away to Valencia, club doctor Andrea Butti told AFP on Thursday. The 30-year-old France captain is currently in Lyon, France undergoing treatment on the injured right hamstring which ruled him out of Wednesday’s 2-2 first leg draw against the Spaniards. Butti was reluctant to say when Vieira would return to action, but admitted he was unlikely to play in Spain on March 6. ‘Every player heals differently and once he is well into his rehabilitation programme we’ll get a better idea of how long he’ll be out, but I’d say it will be very difficult for him to play against Valencia,’ Butti said.
— AFP

‘We let
Pardew down’
Anton Ferdinand has admitted axed West Ham boss Alan Pardew was let down by his players. As Hammers prepared to face Pards’ Charlton today, Ferdinand told The Sun, ‘We did let Pardew down. I can only talk for myself but when I pull on the claret and blue shirt I have my pride no matter who the manager is.‘I was gutted when he got the sack – he did a lot for me. Glenn Roeder did a lot for me putting me in the first team but that was at right-back.‘Pardew gave me the run of games that let me establish myself in the position where I know I play best.
— New Age Desk