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Bangladesh has been awarded eight matches of the World Cup 2011 including two quarter-finals at a meeting of the Central Organising Committee in Mumbai on Tuesday.
   It was the first meeting of the COC since the ICC Board resolved earlier this month that, given the current uncertainty over the security situation in Pakistan, the country should not host the World Cup matches.
   The 14 matches, originally scheduled to take place in Pakistan, have been redistributed with eight going to India, four to Sri Lanka and three to Bangladesh. Out of the total 49 matches to be played in the tournament, 29 will now be held in India, 12 in Sri Lanka and eight in Bangladesh.
   Previously they were scheduled to host 21, nine and five matches respectively. The BCB officials representing Bangladesh at the meeting said they had asked for a semi-final match that was due to be played in Pakistan, but had to remain content with an additional quarter-final.
   The semi-final went to India, who will also host the final. Sri Lanka will host the other semi-final. Of the four quarter-finals, Bangladesh will host two with India and Sri Lanka sharing the other two.
   Bangladesh Cricket Board president Lt General Sina Ibn Jamali, senior vice-president Mahbub Anam and director Shafiqur Rahman represented Bangladesh at the Mumbai meeting.
   The meeting elected BCB vice-president Anam as the secretary of the COC while Ratnakar Shetty has been appointed as the tournament event director replacing Pakistan’s Salman Butt. The meeting also decided to shift tournament’s headquarters from Lahore to Mumbai.
   It has been decided that a total of 13 venues will be used for the tournament with eight of those in India, three in Sri Lanka and two in Bangladesh. Previously 15 venues were selected with eight in India, four in Pakistan, two in Sri Lanka and one in Bangladesh.
   The decision appeared as the main headache for Bangladesh, who had planned to host all five matches allotted previously at a single venue, the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
   Bangabandhu National Stadium has been earmarked exclusively for the opening ceremony and the state minister for youth and sports, Ahad Ali Sarkar, has already made it clear he will not allow the coveted venue to host any match.
   It means the BCB has to look for an additional venue and its spokesman Jalal Yunus said they will make the decision very soon. ‘We will consider every ICC-approved Test venue for the additional matches,’ said Jalal.
   The Mumbai meeting formed a venue inspection sub-committee headed by N Srinivasan, the secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, and it seems that the committee would now find their main tasks in Bangladesh.

Substitute midfielder Pai Soe scored two goals within seven minutes to fire Myanmar to the top of the table of the AFC Challenge Cup Group A qualifying round with a 2-1 victory over Bangladesh at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on Tuesday.
   A late charge saw Myanmar dominate the second half and almost ensure qualification for the final round. However, Bangladesh have a slim chance if they finish runners-up by beating Macau in their last match on Thursday.
   Bangladesh’s woes were further compounded when defender Nasir was sent off for a second bookable offence in the 86th minute.
   Bangladesh skipper and goalkeeper Aminul was in his best as he saved his team from conceding a morale-sapping goal in the very first minute by saving a penalty from Myanmar forward Yaza Win Thien. Barely 30 seconds after the start Bangladesh defender Mamun Miah brought Yaza down inside the box and Japanese referee Matsuo Hajime awarded a spot-kick. Aminul dived to his right to block Yaza’s left-footer.
   Bangladesh cheered up by about seven thousand strong crowd piled on the pressure from the next minute and the spectators burst into celebrations in the 12th minute Enamul headed in an in-swinging corner from midfielder Emon Mahmud.
   Myanmar, clearly demoralised by the goal, took time to absorb the shock and Bangladesh also looked a little bit cautious about losing ball possession. Most of the time the ball was stuck in the midfield with both the teams trying to find the gaps in the opposition defence.
   In the dying minutes of the first half Bangladesh’s ball possession and control saw Myanmar on the back-foot. In the 42nd minute, Nasir gave defence-splitting pass but there was none to connect it. In the very next minute Mamun’s corner was cleared by the Myanmar defenders.
   Myanmar were cursing their bad luck for the second time in the 52nd minute when Yaza’s clever placing from Pyaye Phyo OO’s through pass hit the far post with Aminul lying at the near post.
   Bangladesh, who were looking nervous, paid the penalty of losing concentration in the 69th minute as substitute midfielder Pai Soe headed past Aminul from a neat cross by skipper Myo MinTun.
   Bangladesh defence was in tatters with Myanmar mounting the pressure and duly taking the lead in the 76th minute. Pai Soe put the ball into the near post after Aminul had parried Pyaye Phyo OO’s shot and it fell to unmarked Pai’s feet.
   Myanmar coach Tin Mint Aung was highly grateful to his players. ‘They put up a splendid show and I am very happy, their performance was praiseworthy, they played a very good match,’ said Mint
   Bangladesh coach Dido blamed the low fitness level of his charges for the downfall. ‘My players are not fit enough to handle the situation, Myanmar played a lot of running game and my players fell short of fuel, after all losing is the worst part of the game,’ said Dido.

Cambodia registered their first victory in the AFC Challenge Cup Group A qualifiers when they beat Macau 2-1 at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on Tuesday.
   Cambodia went into the attack from very beginning. The scoreline, however, does not portray the real picture as Cambodia squandered a hatful of chances in the first half.
   Cambodia took the lead through Teab Vathanak who scored with a neat placing shot from the edge of the box from Khim Borey’s cross.
   The rest of the time belonged to Cambodia who saw their efforts miss the target. In the 28th minute Leong Chon thwarted Cambodia skipper Kim Chan Bunrith’s shot and Khim Borey blasted well over the crossbar with the open net in front of him.
   Ace forward Sam el Nesa squandered the easiest of the chances in the 35th minute when he toe-poked Khim Borey’s square pass wide with no one under the bar.
   He was substituted in the very next minute.
   However, the substitute forward Kouch Sokumpheak also fell in the same category as he put the ball straight into the lap of Leong Chon Kit from the six-yard box.
   Teab Vathanak let the team down in the 58th minute when he sneaked through the defence after a Keo Sokngorn through pass but failed to beat Leong Kit who managed to palm the ball away in his second attempt.
   However, Keo Sokngorn doubled the margin in the 66th minute with a 25-yarder that bounced off the inner edge of the crosspiece and went in.
   Cambodia’s lack of concentration allowed Macau to pull a goal back in the 75th minute as Choi Keng Sang put the ball into the far corner from a counter-attack.
   Prak Sovannara, the Cambodia coach, praised his team’s performance. ‘In this simmering conditions my players played well and notched the victory, I think the time to recover after the first match was not enough, so they missed a lot of chances,’ said Sovannara.
   Macau coach Leong Sui Wing focused on the future. ‘I think the experience is good for my boys and they look forward to improving their game,’ said Wing.

Australian captain Michael Clarke has denied teammate Shane Watson approached umpires to complain about Pakistani off-spinner Saeed Ajmal’s bowling action.
   Ajmal, whose action was reported as illegal during the second one-dayer in Dubai on Friday, accused Watson of speaking with the on-field umpires about him.
   But Clarke said none of his players made the complaint.
   ‘All we know is that Watson certainly didn’t go to the umpires and say a word, none of our players have approached (the umpires) and spoken about him (Ajmal),’ he said.
   ‘The series is being played in a fantastic spirit and we want to continue with that.’
   Australia lead the five-match series 2-1 after a spirited all-round show by Clarke, who scored 66 in an otherwise unimpressive total of 198-7 in their match on Monday.
   The Australian captain then chipped in with 3-15 as Pakistan collapsed from 95-0 to 171 all out.
   Pakistan won the first match by four wickets before Australia came back strongly to clinch the second by six wickets.
   The remaining two matches will be played here on May 1 and 3. The only Twenty20 match is scheduled for Dubai on May 7.
   Clarke, standing in for regular captain Ricky Ponting who is being rested for the series along with Michael Hussey and Mitchell Johnson, said he was not bothered about Ajmal’s doosra delivery.
   ‘I don’t know (whether he will still bowl that delivery), I am not picking it.
   Personally I believe that the ball is spinning in all different directions so we must keep focus.
   ‘Both teams got on really very well,’ he added.
   ‘It is hard fought cricket and all that stuff (Ajmal’s action) is for the ICC (International Cricket Council) to make their decision, for us it is about making sure whichever way the ball is spinning we try and hit it.’
   Pakistan captain Younus Khan denied Ajmal has been stopped from bowling the doosra—the delivery for which his action was questioned.
   ‘If Ajmal is playing he is allowed to bowl doosra or any kind of legal delivery,’ said Younus.
   ‘We don’t need any controversy and both teams play very fair.’
   Younus, meanwhile, said he was disappointed over losing Monday’s match from a strong position.
   ‘We spurned a golden opportunity of beating Australia. We must learn the way Australia fought and did not give up, even after putting a low total on the board.’

Following on the controversy created by offspinner Saeed Ajmal saying Shane Watson tipped off the umpires about his bowling action, Pakistan captain Younis Khan has asked why such controversies occurred when Australia were playing teams from the subcontinent.
   Ajmal was reported for a suspect bowling action when delivering the doosra after the second ODI against Australia in Dubai. The off-spinner, however, believed that Shane Watson might have played a role in drawing attention to the bowling action by speaking to umpires Asad Rauf and Billy Bowden during the second one-day international at the Dubai Sports City Stadium.
   ‘This is always happening with India and Pakistan and Australia,’ Younis told AAP. ‘Why do we create all the time controversies? Why? It’s a fair game, you know. You’re talking about the doosra, ‘Why he bowl doosra?’
   ‘Why [shouldn’t] he [Ajmal] bowl the doosra? Because this is an art and especially Pakistanis and Indians, they have the art, so why [should it] not be allowed?’ Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar was reported for a suspect action in Perth in 1999 while Muttiah Muralitharan was called for chucking on two separate tours of Australia.
   Australia captain Michael Clarke, however, played down the issue and said Watson did not speak to the umpires about Ajmal’s action. ‘Watto certainly didn’t go to the umpires and say a word, none of our players have approached the umpires and spoken about it,’ Clarke said. ‘For us I think the way this tournament has been played, the spirit of the game has been fantastic. Both teams have got on really well, it’s been hard-fought cricket, it’s been so competitive, it’s been such a good tour so far.’
   Pakistan played Ajmal in the third ODI, which they lost by 27 runs to concede a 2-1 lead, and he continued to bowl the doosra. Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam said Ajmal would continue to do so until he was tested by the ICC’s experts.

England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff is expected to be fit for June’s World Twenty20 event after he underwent keyhole surgery on his right knee, the England and Wales Cricket (Board) said Tuesday.
   The fast bowler and hard-hitting batsman tore the meniscus in his right knee while playing in the Indian Premier League in South Africa.
   Hugh Morris, the England cricket managing director, said: ‘The surgeon has informed the ECB chief medical officer Nick Peirce the operation went extremely smoothly.
   ‘I am grateful to the ECB medical team, the surgeon and radiologists as well as the Chennai Super Kings (Flintoff’s IPL team) for keeping the England team management and me informed about Andrew’s injury and the subsequent operation.’
   An ECB statement added: ‘It is expected that Flintoff will make a normal recovery and should be available for the ICC World Twenty20 which will be held in England in June.’
   That would leave Flintoff with between five to six weeks to regain full fitness but the ECB’s optimism about the 31-year-old Lancashire star’s prospects may not be widely shared given his extensive injury history.
   And the fact that Flintoff, who has a lucrative England central contract designed to give the national management control over when he plays and when he rests, suffered his latest injury while playing in the money-spinning IPL, has led to criticism of both the player and the board.
   ‘Players just cannot have their cake and eat it,’ former England captain Nasser Hussain wrote in the Daily Mail last weekend after news of Flintoff’s latest injury became public.
   ‘They cannot expect to reap the benefits of a lucrative central contract and then only be under the control of the ECB when it suits them.
   ‘Player power has over-ridden common sense,’ added Hussain, who played alongside Flintoff for England.
   England have a busy home season with the West Indies series and the World Twenty20 coming ahead of an Ashes campaign, with England fans hoping Flintoff can repeat his outstanding performance in their side’s 2005 series win at home to Australia.
   ‘We must now ask: just what is the point of the England players’ central contracts if they are not to guard against them getting injured ahead of a summer containing the World Twenty20 and the Ashes?’ Hussain said.
   The likes of Australia captain Ricky Ponting withdrew from this year’s IPL to concentrate on their international commitments.
   Flintoff’s career has been interrupted by several injuries with foot, back, groin, hernia, shoulder, side and hip problems all causing him to miss international matches, while his left ankle has been operated on four times.
   He became the jointly most highly valued player in world cricket when he was signed to play in the IPL for 1.55 million dollars, as was his England team-mate Kevin Pietersen.
   But Flintoff took just two wickets at an expensive 52.50 apiece in his three IPL matches.
   His absence could open up a way back into Test cricket for former captain Michael Vaughan or all-rounder Ravi Bopara when the squad for next week’s first Test against the West Indies at Lord’s is announced on Wednesday.

Senior pros Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya produced vintage strokeplay to give Mumbai Indians a key victory in the Indian Premier League here on Monday.
   The ageing duo hammered 127 for the first wicket from just 12.2 overs as Mumbai scored 187-6 in 20 overs after electing to take first strike and then bowled out Kolkata Knight Riders for 95 in 15.2 overs.
   The massive 92-run victory took Mumbai’s tally to five points from four matches, putting them in third place behind leaders Deccan Chargers (eight points) and Delhi Daredevils (six).
   Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan’s Knight Riders were left tottering on three points from five games and needed to win a majority of their remaining nine matches to stay in contention for the semi-finals.
   Tendulkar, the world’s leading Test and one-day batsman who has voluntarily opted out of India’s Twenty20 squad, smashed a brilliant 68 off 45 balls.
   The prolific 36-year-old hit six boundaries and four sixes, one of them against Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis that landed outside the St George’s Park stadium.
   Jayasuriya, who turns 40 in June, hammered 52 off 32 balls with two fours and four sixes as the veterans turned the clock back in a breathtaking display of attacking batting.
   Kolkata’s chase faltered early when skipper Brendon McCullum was dismissed by Lasith Malinga in the second over and West Indian captain Chris Gayle fell to team-mate Dwayne Bravo in the third.
   Brad Hodge (24) and Sourav Ganguly (34) were the chief contributors to Kolkata’s meagre total as Lasith Malinga and Abhishek Nayar scalped three wickets each.

Moham-medan Sporting Club will face Top Sports in the opening match of the Port-city Cricket League as the organisers finalised the groupings and fixtures of the Twenty20 competition on Tuesday.
   Chittagong Moham-medan, Abahani and Brothers Union all have been placed in Group A that also included Top Sports while Group B is composed of Dada Warriors, Pirates of Chittagong, Ispahani SC and Dhaka Tigers.
   The opening match will begin at 2:30pm on May 2. The organisers have dropped the plan to hold day-night matches at the group stage, so the next match between Dada Warriors and Dhaka Tigers will start at 10:00am the next day. The match will be followed by the clash between Abahani and Brothers.
   PCL secretary Sirajuddin Mohammad Alamgir, however, said they are planning to hold the semi-finals and the final under floodlight and so did not decide on the timings of the matches yet.
   Private television channel ATN Bangla will broadcast the opening, semi-final and final matches live from the stadium.

The inaugural edition of the National Club Cup Cricket Tournament kicks off today with Top Sports Club of Noakhali taking on Shishu Park Ekadash of Bandarban at the Noakhali Shaheed Bhulu Stadium.
   The 37-team knock-out competition is being organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board. The first round will be held at seven venues – Patuakhali stadium, Jhenaidah stadium, Mymensing stadium, Rajshahi Divisional Stadium, Noakhali Shaheed Bhulu Stadium, Cricket Garden in Rangpur and Faridpur stadium – across the country.
   ‘This is an initiative to strengthen club cricket throughout Bangladesh. The league champion teams of the districts are participating. We have even included last season’s league champions from the districts where the local leagues have not started this season,’ BCB’s tournament committee chairman Gazi Ashraf Hossain said in a statement.
   Eight teams will proceed to the quarter-finals which will be held in Dhaka. The champion and runner-up teams of Chittagong Division and Sylhet Division will join the champions of other six zones in the quarter-finals.
   A club team is not allowed to include players from a different district. This rule is also applicable for the registered cricketers of a local league who belong to another district, said the BCB.
   The BCB has introduced financial incentives for the championship.
   All participating teams will each receive Tk 25,000 for match expenses. For a victory in the first round the winners will get Tk 5,000. The qualifiers for the quarter-finals will get Tk 20,000 to bear the expenses and Tk 8,000 for a win. The champion team’s prize money will be Tk 1,00,000 while the runners-up will receive Tk 50,000.

Some rearguard action saved the blushes of the Bangladesh Under-19 team as they ended the second day of the first three-day match against the Sri Lanka Under-19s on 229-7 at the Khulna Divisional Stadium on Tuesday.
   The hosts still trail Sri Lanka U-19s by 51 runs as the visitors could add only nine runs to their overnight 271-9 before being all out for 280 runs in the morning.
   Replying to the innings, Bangladesh began terribly when they lost both the openers with only two runs on the scoreboard. They were soon reduced to 62 for five before Anamul Haque stemmed the rot with a splendid 43 runs.
   Taibur Rahman and Noor Hossain continued his hard work with an unbroken 91-run stand for the eighth wicket to take Bangladesh to a respectable position at the stumps. Taibur remained unbeaten on 54 while Noor was batting on 49.

Paul Collingwood wants to captain England at this year’s Twenty20 World Cup even though he is not considered good enough for a starting place in his Indian Premier League team.
   Collingwood is favourite to lead hosts England after test and one-day skipper Andrew Strauss was left out of the squad for the June 5-21 tournament.
   ‘Yes, I am interested. It would be an exciting challenge to lead England in a tournament on home soil,’ he wrote in the Daily Telegraph on Tuesday.
   ‘But I am still waiting to hear, just like the other players. The squad is due to be announced on Friday, so I am sure everything will be tied up by then.’
   The second edition of the lucrative IPL was switched to South Africa due to security concerns and logistical issues surrounding the ongoing Indian general elections and Collingwood has mixed emotions over his team’s performance so far.
   ‘I have enough to think about out here in South Africa. The good news is that my fellow Delhi Daredevils have given us a 100 percent record in the Indian Premier League after three games.
   ‘The bad news is that I’ve not been in the starting XI yet, and only an injury to one of the four first-choice overseas players is likely to change that.
   ‘AB de Villiers and Tillakeratne Dilshan are both among the leading run-scorers, while the bowlers, Daniel Vettori and Dirk Nannes, have been on the money too.’

After missing out on the chance to impress in the Indian Premier League, leg-spinner Danish Kaneria is hoping his performances for Essex will persuade Pakistan’s selectors to include him in their squad for the World Twenty20 here in June.
   Kaneria, who was unable to feature in the IPL after Pakistan’s government refused permission for players to travel to India, has never played 20-over cricket for his country and has not been in a one-day side since 2007.
   But he has shown with Essex he can be a threat in the shorter format, taking 20 wickets last year in the Twenty20 Cup, the third biggest haul in the tournament.
   ‘The Indian Premier League would have been the ideal platform to dismiss this impression that I cannot play Twenty20 cricket,’ Kaneria said.
   ‘I have been doing well for Essex in this format for the last couple of years and I want to show people that I am not just a bowler suited to Test and first-class cricket,’ he said.
   ‘I think if I do well for Essex in Twenty20 and one-day cricket then it would be a big plus when the selectors sit down to finalise the Twenty20 squad.
   ‘The fact the event is in England where I was one of the top wicket-takers in the Twenty20 Cup last year will hopefully aid my case.
   ‘The selectors know that I am used to the conditions.’
   Kaneria said he had the support of captain Younus Khan.
   ‘I had a long chat with Younus and he has raised my morale,’ he said.
   ‘He advised me to keep working hard on my bowling and fielding and not to give up hope.’

Ray Jennings, the Bangalore Royal Challengers coach, says he has yet to decide who will captain the embattled franchise once Kevin Pietersen departs for England after Wednesday’s match against Kolkata. Jennings’ comments come as a major surprise, given Bangalore had previously nominated South African Jacques Kallis to take over from Pietersen when the England batsman returns for the Test series against West Indies.
   ‘It is still open,’ Jennings said. ‘I need to sit down and discuss with the management what we need to do.’
   Jennings now appears to be hedging his bets on the captaincy issue in the event Kallis loses his place in the Bangalore starting XI.
   ‘If Jacques plays, obviously he might be captain,’ Jennings said. ‘But if he doesn’t play we have other guys like [Mark] Boucher, [Anil] Kumble and even [Rahul] Dravid (when he comes back) who are capable of leading the team.’

Kolo Toure believes the youthful current crop of Arsenal stars can emulate the battle-hardened class of 2006 and book their ticket to this season’s Champions League final.
   The Gunners face Manchester United in the first leg of their semi-final at Old Trafford today with Toure, the only survivor from the ‘Invincibles’ squad that went through the 2003-04 Premier League campaign unbeaten.
   That squad, constructed around the French trio of Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Robert Pires, broke up after the 2006 Champions League final defeat by Barcelona but Toure believes the north London club is once again on the verge of something special.
   ‘True we lost Thierry Henry, but Emmanuel Adebayor is playing really well; we lost Robert Pires, but we have Samir Nasri,’ the Ivory Coast defender said.
   ‘All those players have been replaced. The good thing about this team is we have a lot of young players who want to show they have the quality.
   ‘I remember that a team like Ajax – nobody was expecting them to win, but they won (in 1995) and had a really young team as well.’
   Arsenal will miss the creative edge provided by top-scorer Robin van Persie, who is ruled out by a groin injury, and cup-tied Russian playmaker Andrei Arshavin.
   But they will take heart from the fact that they have already beaten United this season (2-1 at the Emirates in November) and by the current form of captain Cesc Fabregas, who has been revelling in the role of a deep-lying forward akin to that in which Steven Gerrard has thrived at Liverpool this season.
   The brace Fabregas claimed against Middlesbrough on Sunday were his first goals since October and Toure is confident the Spaniard’s guile, combined with the presence of Adebayor and the pace of Theo Walcott, will pose the holders problems. The key, he believes, will be matching their offensive contribution with equal vigour in defence.
   ‘We know when we play football against Manchester United, they struggle a lot,’ Toure argued. ‘They’re are a really good team going forward, but, like us, at the back they have conceded a few goals.
   ‘We have the same type of team – we both like to play, but sometimes you can be caught out at the back. The team that will win will be the one which defends the best.’
   United’s performance against Tottenham at the weekend would not have reassured their fans on that score, although their forwards more than compensation as they turned a 2-0 deficit into a 5-2 victory.
   The half-time introduction of Carlos Tevez proved critical and the Argentinian forward will hope to have earned a starting slot in a United side that looks certain to see Ryan Giggs make his 800th appearance for the club.
   The veteran was rested for the Spurs match and is relishing the prospect of another high-stakes showdown with Arsenal, against whom he scored the goal of his career in the 1999 FA Cup semi-final.
   ‘They don’t come bigger than that – a Champions League semi-final at Old Trafford,’ said the newly-crowned players’ Player of the Year. ‘I can’t wait.
   ‘But I’m more interested in beating Arsenal rather than the 800th appearance. They are things I’ll look back upon when I finish and I’ll be proud. But first and foremost, hopefully I’ll be celebrating with a good result.’
   Toure could have former United defender Mikael Silvestre as his centre-back partner at Old Trafford but the French defender has only a 50-50 chance of playing against his old club because of a back spasm while the daunting task of containing Cristiano Ronaldo looks set to fall to teenager Kieran Gibbs, as regular left-back Gael Clichy has his own back problem.
   ‘Kieran is intelligent and I think he is going to perform very well on Wednesday,’ Toure said. ‘But it is not only about him, it is about all the players. If we are focused and defend together, then nobody can beat us.’
   The performance of United’s left-back, Patrice Evra, could be just as critical. The Frenchman was given a torrid time by Aaron Lennon on Saturday and Arsenal supporters will expect to see Walcott test him in similar fashion.
   John O’Shea’s experience should ensure he gets the nod at right-back ahead of Brazilian teenager Rafael.

Teenage striker Federico Macheda’s staggering impact at Manchester United has sparked a raging debate in Italy on how to stem the exodus of the country’s brightest talents.
   Macheda’s startling goal-scoring start to life as a United senior player has fans here wondering what’s so wrong with their own football that their best young players move away.
   Once the predator, Italy is now feeling what it’s like to be the prey and the economic muscle of the English Premier League is largely responsible for that.
   It was for financial reasons that Macheda left Lazio to sign for United while just 16, but now Italy want UEFA to intervene to stop other young players being prised away.
   According to Ciro Ferrara, a former rugged defender with Juventus but now head of the club’s junior section, it’s not Italy’s fault that top players are being poached.
   ‘You can’t talk about a failure of Italian football, international rules have changed,’ he said.
   ‘(UEFA president Michel) Platini has to intervene, UEFA has to stop the exodus of our young footballers to foreign shores.
   ‘Players are often taken away by paying off their families but the rules shouldn’t allow it.’
   Macheda is not the only young player to have been tempted by United as they also pinched midfielder Davide Petrucci off Lazio’s city rivals AS Roma.
   But according to another player seduced by United, it is Italian clubs who are at fault for not giving young players enough of a chance.
   Giuseppe Rossi left Parma for United at 17 before being sold to Spaniards Villarreal. But for spending half a season on loan back at Parma in 2006/07, the 22-year-old has spent his entire senior career playing outside the country he represents at international level.
   ‘Why don’t I play in Italy? It’s not my fault. Clubs make their decisions and I make my own,’ he said.
   ‘The important thing is to show off your skills in front of a big crowd. And when you play you have a chance to be seen.
   ‘Italian football is changing, giving more chances to young players. That’s the right decision because the talent is there.
   ‘In England and Spain everything is different, they have more patience. Barcelona have three or four 20 year olds in their first team.’
   An example of the apparent unwillingness to give youth a chance can be found at AC Milan, who last season saw the emergence of two teenage forwards – Brazilian Pato and Italian Alberto Paloschi.
   But while Pato has gone on to become an established first team regular, Paloschi was allowed to leave for Serie B Parma during the close season.
   With marquee signings Ronaldinho and Andriy Shevchenko failing to make an impact, and Marco Borriello injured, Milan have instead turned to veteran 35-year-old forward Filippo Inzaghi to lead the line.
   In fairness, Inzaghi has been enjoying an Indian summer to his career with 10 goals in his last seven matches, but Milan have been criticised for not taking a chance on youth and kept hold of Paloschi rather than Inzaghi.
   It may not be a bad thing for his career, though, as he has seen plenty of first team action in Serie B, scoring nine goals in 32 appearances.
   He may well be plying his trade regularly in Serie A next season and getting more playing time than he would have done with Milan.
   But even so, Ferrara thinks teams in Italy need to take more risks on young players.
   ‘It’s a mistake not to spend much money on the youth system and give players a chance to emerge, even to go on the pitch and make mistakes,’ he said.
   ‘It takes time for them to develop. But teams have an obligation to win and they choose a less risky path, but even that doesn’t guarantee victories.’

In the wake of Jurgen Klinsmann’s sacking by Bayern Munich, caretaker coach Jupp Heynckes said Tuesday his goal is to ensure his side qualify for the Champions League in his five games in charge.
   ‘A club like Bayern Munich must be playing in the Champions League next year,’ said Heynckes who won two Bundesliga titles with Bayern in his first spell as Munich coach between 1987 and 1991.
   ‘Five teams can still win the league and the players are better, for example, than the way they played last weekend.’
   Klinsmann was sacked Monday after the last in a series of bad results, a 1-0 home defeat to Schalke 04, left the defending champions in third place three points behind leaders Wolfsburg.
   Heynckes, 63, said he was ‘surprised’ to be asked to take over from Klinsmann, but he quickly accepted the position ‘out of friendship for Bayern Munich and for Uli (Hoeness, Bayern team manager).’
   Along with assistant Hermann Gerland, who was promoted from coaching Bayern’s reserve team, Heynckes was set to take his first training session on Tuesday afternoon and wants to hold one-on-one talks with the players.
   ‘I want to see how the players are moving, how active they are,’ he said.
   Heynckes’ first game in charge this Saturday will be against Borussia Moenchgladbach, the club he represented for eight years, winning four Bundesliga crowns and the UEFA Cup, in 1975.
   ‘It’s not exactly a dream start,’ he admitted.
   But in his bid for a top two finish, Heynckes faces two relegation-threatened sides in ‘Gladbach and then Energie Cottbus the following weekend.
   Although Bayern are only three points off the pace, Hamburg, Stuttgart and Hertha Berlin are also in the race for the Bundesliga title.
   Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said he aims to name Klinsmann’s permanent successor within the next six weeks and scotched rumours Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger - who speaks fluent German - has been approached about the job.
   Having guided Germany to third place at the 2006 World Cup, Klinsmann’s Bayern contract was until June 30, 2010, but he only lasted 10 months in his first role in charge of a domestic team and lost seven of his 29 league games.

AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti believes David Beckham will join the Italian giants on a permanent basis at the end of the year.
   Beckham was meant to return to LA Galaxy last month, but the Rossoneri struck a deal with the MLS side to extend the 33-year-old’s short-term loan deal at the San Siro until the end of the Serie A campaign.
   Beckham is set to return to America for the rest of the MLS season and another stint at the Serie A giants has been mooted. Tottenham are also interested in the England midfielder but Ancelotti believes he will be back at the San Siro next January.
   ‘Beckham will return to the United States and will stay there until the end of his contract, which expires in November,’ the Milan boss told Il Messagero.
   ‘Then Milan will buy him in the winter transfer market.
   ‘David has proved himself to be an exemplary professional and I honestly didn’t expect him to play at such a high level.’
   Ancelotti, has been heavily linked with the vacancies at Real Madrid and Chelsea, but has once again reiterated his desire to remain at the Rossoneri helm.
   ‘I will stay on for next season at least and we are already working towards strengthening the squad,’ added Ancelotti. ‘I’m not going to Chelsea.
   ‘I am used to all the reports and they will probably continue, but it’s not a problem.’
   Next season will be Ancelotti’s ninth in charge of Milan and will see him draw level with Nereo Rocco as the Rossoneri’s longest-serving manager.
   And, while the 49-year-old is not planning on moving any time soon he admits it would be a dream to coach another one of his former clubs Roma - where he spent eight years as a player.
   ‘It is a dream that sooner or later I will realise,’ continued Ancelotti, who also captained the capital club for several years. ‘To coach the Giallorossi is a desire that I have never hidden.
   ‘Roma has remained in my heart; for the people, the history that you breathe in the city, the food.’

Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o has grappled with many hardy foes during his career, but the Cameroonian hitman has probably never found himself in direct opposition with a player like Marc Janko.
   The 6ft 5in 25-year-old plays his club football for Austrian first division leaders Red Bull Salzburg, but rather than a wily centre-half or an indefatigable full-back, Janko is a striker.
   He also happens to be Eto’o’s nearest rival for the European Golden Boot, the award handed out each year for the top goalscorer in European football.
   The Austrian has scored an astonishing 35 goals in just 27 league games this season, firing his side to a seven-point lead at the league summit, but he says his focus is on the title, rather than individual honours.
   ‘We are on course for the league title and we therefore simply have to win,’ he said.
   ‘My main aim is helping the club to the title and then I can think about the European golden boot and the Austrian goalscoring record (41).’
   Eto’o has scored 27 times this term, but the weighting system employed by award organisers the European Sport Magazine group means that he leads Janko at the top of the continental scoring charts.
   Players who represent clubs in Europe’s top five leagues – England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France – are awarded two points per goal scored, but those who earn their corn in the continent’s weaker competitions are awarded either one or 1.5 points.
   Austria’s UEFA co-efficient means their goalscorers are awarded 1.5 points, giving Janko a current total of 52.5 points. Eto’o has 54, despite having scored eight fewer goals.
   Eto’o is also bidding to become the first player in Spain to score over 30 goals in a season since Barcelona predecessor Ronaldo netted 34 times in the 1996-97 campaign, but he, too, professes not to be interested by individual glory.
   ‘I just wish, if God allows, to be able to fight to try to snatch the title from Real Madrid. Whatever comes after will be welcome,’ he said.
   Janko would not be the first European hot-shot to be beaten to the prize by a more illustrious name from a bigger league.
   The list of recent recipients reads like a Who’s Who of world football, with France striker Thierry Henry, Italy’s Francesco Totti and Manchester United’s Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo all picking up the award in recent years.
   Looking further back, though, the list takes on an altogether more unfamiliar feel.
   Georgi Slavkov of Bulgarian side Trakia was honoured for his goalscoring exploits in the 1980-81 season, while names as unheralded as Hector Yazalde, Kees Kist and Sotiris Kaiafas have all scored their way to glory since the award’s inception in 1967.
   The reason for the Golden Boot’s more democratic feel in its earlier incarnation was that all the goals scored in Europe were valued equally.
   And while it made for some unfamiliar names on the winners’ register, it didn’t prevent global superstars such as Eusebio, Gerd Muller and Marco van Basten from walking away with the trophy.
   All that changed, however, in 1991, following an accusation from Cypriot football officials that one of their players had been overlooked by then-organisers France Football magazine.
   The magazine stopped handing out the award, naming an ‘unofficial’ winner between 1992 and 1996, when ESM - of which France Football was then a member - stepped into the breach and introduced the ranking system in a bid to negate conflict.
   Ronaldo’s victory in 1997 immediately re-established the award’s glamour credentials, but the battle between Janko and Eto’o bears testament to the fact that the Golden Boot doesn’t always go to Europe’s sharpest shooter.

A British minister and a senior opposition politician threw their weight behind a campaign to secure a knighthood for Manchester United midfielder Ryan Giggs on Monday.
   Their backing for the honour – which would mean the 35-year-old would become Sir Ryan – lends weight to an internet campaign launched in recent days by political blogger Tim Montgomerie.
   ‘Ryan Giggs, as well as an outstanding record on the pitch, has a proud record of voluntary work off the pitch, including with young players in Salford,’ said local government minister Hazel Blears, whose Salford constituency borders the northwestern English city of Manchester.
   ‘He is a positive role model in so many ways that he deserves the recognition of a knighthood.’
   Opposition Conservative Party home affairs spokesman Chris Grayling, a self-confessed Manchester United fan, chimed in, describing Giggs as ‘the outstanding British footballer of the last generation’. His achievements deserve to be recognised with a knighthood.’
   As part of the internet petition, which he launched through unofficial Manchester United fansite www.mustbered.com, Montgomerie has listed 11 reasons why Giggs should be knighted, ranging from his footballing accomplishments to his charity work.
   Giggs was on Sunday evening named the English Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Player of the Year for the first time, despite starting just 12 league games this season. The Welsh midfielder, who could win his 11th league title with United this campaign, had twice won the Young Player of the Year award but can now add the ultimate mark of esteem from his fellow professionals to his long list of prizes.

Manches-ter City manager Mark Hughes on Tuesday denied that the club had begun talks with Barcelona aimed at bringing Samuel Eto’o to the English Premier League club.
   A meeting between City chief executive Garry Cook and Barca President Joan Laporta in London on Monday triggered a flurry of reports suggesting a 40-million-pound bid (58 million dollars) for the Cameroon striker was in the offing.
   But Hughes claimed the talks were simply part of an effort to establish closer links to Europe’s top clubs following the takeover of City by the Abu Dhabi United Group, who financed last year’s 32-million-pound acquisition of Robinho.
   ‘There has been speculation about players all year,’ Hughes told Manchester radio station Key103. ‘It is something that we accept and has become predictable.
   ‘The meeting was not about individuals but how both clubs can help each other.
   ‘As a club, we are trying to get relationships with clubs who would not previously have passed the time of day with us.
   ‘Now, because of Sheikh Mansour (club backer, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan) they want to have a relationship and talk about plans that would benefit both clubs. We are aiming to have this kind of relationship with all top clubs in Europe.’
   Eto’o, 28, is under contract with Barca until the end of next season but has yet to sign a new four-year deal the club have offered him, suggesting he may be thinking about moving on.

Jurgen Klinsmann’s dismissal as Bayern Munich coach on Monday may have raised some eyebrows around the world, but few were surprised here after the poor results which proved unacceptable to the German giants.
   The low point of Klinsmann’s ten-month reign came on April 8 in the cauldron of the Nou Camp when Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and co won 4-0 to make a mockery of Bayern’s Champions League ambitions in the quarter-final first leg.
   It came on the back of a 5-1 mauling at Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga four days before, and cries of ‘Klinsmann out!’ started to echo around Munich’s Allianz Arena in the following games until the fans’ wish eventually came true.
   In the end, Klinsmann lasted exactly 302 days in his first domestic coaching role and iconic memories of him hugging German Chancellor Angela Merkel after Germany reached third place at the 2006 World Cup are now fading fast.
   ‘He should have made more out of the team,’ said a disgruntled Bayern fan after hearing the news. ‘It’s a shame, but he was a bad coach.’
   As is the current trend in football management, Klinsmann was given little time to bring success to a club used to dominating the Bundesliga and his players did little to help with occasionally poor and often erratic performances.
   ‘The man got the German team to third place in the World Cup. They should have given him more time,’ said another sympathetic fan.
   Klinsmann, who became known for his trademark dives as a player, was appointed in January 2008 to replace Ottmar Hitzfeld, who won the domestic treble of league, Cup and League Cup last season before departing to coach Switzerland.
   Doubts were first raised when ‘Klinsi’ started work on July 1 and began by making sweeping changes that did not impress the Bayern faithful.
   Flashy renovations meant the training centre was now state-of-the-art, with Buddhist statutes on the roof (which were later to disappear), while an eight-hour training day was introduced with players expected to learn languages.
   And the decision to close the public restaurant overlooking the training ground for the sake of privacy did not please the devoted fans who traditionally enjoyed watching their heroes while sipping a beer.
   Having drawn their opening two league games this season, a 4-1 win at home over Hertha Berlin implied Bayern were on the right path, which seemed to be confirmed when the side then won 3-0 at Cologne.
   However, things went spectacularly wrong in September when Werder Bremen raced into a 5-0 lead at the Allianz Arena before Germany midfielder Tim Borowski pulled back two late goals to save some face.
   But the seeds of doubt had been sown and puzzling decisions did not help Klinsmann’s cause as captain Mark van Bommel was left on the bench, while the coach failed to coax Germany star Lukas Podolski into any kind of form.
   The writing was on the wall when Bayern were hammered 5-1 at Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga on April 4 and then four days later they were given what chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge described as a ‘football lesson’ in Barcelona.
   And German daily Tageszeitung summed up the mood before the home second leg when they ran an image of Klinsmann being crucified under the headline ‘Always look on the bright side of life’.
   Klinsmann sued, but it reflected his failing luck when he lost that one too after a court dismissed his claims.
   Barcelona strolled into Munich for the second leg and and barely broke sweat in the 1-1 draw which put Bayern out of the Champions League with their high hopes of a European crown crushed.
   And when Schalke 04 inflicted the seventh defeat of the season on Bayern last Saturday, leaving Munich with a 1-0 win, Rummenigge’s patience finally snapped.
   Former Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes, who won consecutive Bundesliga titles in 1989 and 1990, will take over as manager for the remaining five league games, with Hermann Gerland as his assistant, and the pair begin work on Tuesday.
   Rummenigge will now scour the planet looking for a replacement and while the Bayern boss has dismissed rumours that he has approached Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, he hopes to have Klinsmann’s successor in place by May 31.
   Hamburg boss Martin Jol has also been linked to the job by the press here, but whoever gets the job will already know that immediate success is both expected and demanded at a club where victory is the only acceptable option.

Ryan Giggs is ready to re-enact one of the most famous goal celebrations in history.
   It is 10 years since Giggs, the newly-crowned PFA player of the year, skipped past four players on a 60-yard run before smashing in a sensational late goal to beat Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-final at Villa Park.
   The Welsh wizard was so overcome by the emotion of the occasion that he whipped his shirt off, whirling it round his head and kept running all the way back to the half-way line.
   Giggs admits he might just expose that rippling torso all over again if he gets the winner against the Gunners which clinches United’s place in the Champions League final in Rome.
   Go on to the internet and signed photos of that iconic image are still trading for a healthy sum.These days, of course, you get booked for flashing the flesh but that will not bother Giggs provided it does not cost him a ban.
   Recalling that amazing night in 1999, Giggs said: ‘It was a great moment for me personally and for the team. It was a massive turning point in the season that ended in the Treble.
   ‘Arsenal are a top, top team. They always have been. Over the years they’ve been our biggest challengers so when you play against them you’ve got to raise your game.
   ‘I will always be remembered for that celebration. I don’t know if I like the picture though because people remember the celebration more than the goal!
   ‘When you score a goal, especially an important one like that, the feelings rise up and you’ve got no control over yourself.
   ‘That’s what football is all about. You never know what’s going to happen next. I used to say I would never do it again but you never know. If you score an important winning goal again in the last minute you might just do it.’
   At the venerable age of 35, Giggs remains a key figure in United’s assault on the Quadruple.
   He has spent more than 20 years at Old Trafford and his PFA award from his fellow pros is a fitting tribute to a magnificent career.
   The Welshman — who could make his 800th appearance for United tomorrow night — is feared by defenders as much as when he carved his way past those hapless Gunners so long ago it was in the last century!
   Giggs has cut out the booze, improved his diet and taken to yoga to keep himself in such good shape. There is no sign of him hanging up his boots and why should he when his manager is still picking him?
   To think six years ago the United fans were on his back telling him he was past it.
   Giggs added: ‘I remember back in 2003 I was getting a bit of stick and that wasn’t enjoyable.
   ‘It was the first time I’d experienced it, so to win the league and end the season so strong was pleasing for me. It meant I’d got through it.
   ‘Since I turned 30 I’ve been more consistent. During my 20s the odd game I played probably better than I do now but consistently, over the season, I’ve got better the older I’ve got.
   ‘I’ve had to make some sacrifices — diet, alcohol, yoga. I was missing a lot of games through hamstring injuries then.
   ‘It helps that I’m not as quick as I used to be so I’m not getting those hamstring injuries any more and I don’t play as many games.
   ‘Yoga has definitely helped with my hamstrings and also how I feel. I feel good after games and fresh during games.’
   The new players continually arriving at Old Trafford also spur Giggs on.
   He said: ‘You get inspired by seeing the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and all the younger players coming through. This season it’s been Rafael.
   ‘When I’m playing against Rafael in training and he’s bombing past me, you’ve got to do something about it. It’s not nice but you’ve got to raise your game.

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has admitted he will have to sell players to help fund summer transfer targets.
   Benitez will look to strengthen his squad in close season to keep pace with Manchester United and Chelsea and make another push for the Premier League title next term.
   The Reds have been linked with a second attempt to sign Aston Villa’s Gareth Barry, as well as Valencia striker David Villa and Portsmouth right-back Glen Johnson, but in order to bring in that calibre of player he will have to trim his squad.
   Ryan Babel and Andrea Dossena have been unconvincing and could be sacrificed, and Sami Hyypia is reported to have been offered a deal to join the coaching staff.
   ‘More or less I will have an idea of how much we will have to spend,’ said Benitez.
   ‘I think we’d have to sell players to increase the money we’ll need, but at the moment we’re not talking about names and money.
   ‘We are working on targets and we will try to do things as quickly and cheaply as possible.
   ‘Every year it is important to sign good players, the right players. We know we have better players than before and it will be difficult to find better players than we have now.
   ‘But we are working very hard during the season, looking for and watching players. We will be ready.’

Manchester United will play against the Malaysian national team on July 18 as part their pre-season Asian tour, organisers confirmed Tuesday.
   ‘The team will arrive in Kuala Lumpur one day before the match,’ San Boon Wah, managing director of Proevents, the match promoter, was quoted as saying by Bernama news agency.
   San said Kuala Lumpur would be the first destination for the Red Devils in their Asian Tour 2009 before the team heads to Indonesia on July 20, South Korea (July 24) and China (July 26).
   Manchester United has a huge fan base in Malaysia.
   Azzuddin Ahmad, general secretary of the Football Association of Malaysia, said the Malaysian team would put on their best performance against Manchester United.
   ‘We are looking forward to the match because it will be one of the best exposures for the national team against a quality team such as MU,’ he said.
   It will be the Red Devils fourth tour to Malaysia since 1991. In 2001, they hammered the Malaysia selection 6-0.

Former Germany midfielder Mehmet Scholl was appointed temporary coach of Bayern Munich’s reserve team on Monday as his predecessor Hermann Gerland was promoted following Jurgen Klinsmann’s sacking.
   Ex-Germany boss Klinsmann was sacked as head coach on Monday after just ten months in charge and has been temporarily replaced by Jupp Heynckes, with Gerland to act as his assistant for the last five games of the season.
   Scholl, 38, has been promoted from Bayern’s youth team set-up and will be in charge of the reserves until the end of the season.
   ‘Mehmet was a big player for Bayern and he has gained a lot of experience with the youth team, so we know we can rely on him,’ said Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.