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With World Cup-winning coaches in both dugouts, some of the world’s finest players on show and South Africa 2010 in sight, Argentina’s match with Brazil today is as big as they get.
   Encounters between the South American giants are always passionate affairs but the weekend’s World Cup qualifier in the Argentine city of Rosario has been given further spice by Argentina’s desperate need for points.
   Brazil top the regional qualifying standings ahead of Chile and Paraguay and could conceivably book their place in next summer’s tournament if results go their way this weekend, but Argentina are struggling.
   The appointment of the legendary Diego Maradona as coach has failed to inspire an upturn in Argentine fortunes after a below-par start to the campaign and they go into the game in the fourth and final automatic qualifying berth.
   By contrast his opposite number Dunga, captain when Brazil won the 1994 World Cup in America, has turned the Selecao into a well-drilled, counter-attacking unit.
   Under his guidance Brazil have won the 2007 Copa America - beating Argentina 3-0 in the final - as well as winning the Confederations Cup in June, but centre-back Juan says the focus should be on the players, rather than their illustrious coaches.
   ‘Maradona was a tremendous player, who shares a beautiful history with the Argentinian national team,’ said the Roma defender.
   ‘On the same note, Dunga and Brazil have a history of their own. Neither will be on the pitch this time, however.
   ‘We respect Maradona for everything he stands for in the world game but we’ve also got a great coach, which puts us on an equal footing once the game begins.’
   Argentina, world champions in 1978 and 1986, have not missed football’s showpiece occasion since 1970, but defeat against their fierce rivals would bring that seemingly unthinkable scenario even closer.
   They travel to third-placed Paraguay on Wednesday next week, with games against Peru and traditional rivals Uruguay to follow in October.
   The stakes could not be higher for the home team and they have reacted by switching the match from their usual El Monumental home in Buenos Aires to the intimidating surroundings of the 42,000-seater Estadio Gigante de Arroyito in the eastern port city of Rosario.
   ‘I’m only thinking about winning, I refuse to countenance defeat. We’re hungrier for victory than Brazil,’ said Maradona, who took over the reins in November 2008.
   The clash between Barcelona talisman Lionel Messi and Real Madrid’s 65 million-euro signing Kaka provides one of many intriguing sub-plots, but Messi’s strike partner Carlos Tevez says his side will show no mercy when they confront the five-time world champions.
   ‘I think they’re going to come with a bit of fear and we’re going to eat them on the pitch,’ said the Manchester City new boy. ‘But we have to respect them, because it’s Brazil.’
   Dunga has handed a first call-up to Internacional’s 20-year-old defensive midfielder Sandro in place of injured Wolfsburg captain Josue, while Maradona sprang a major surprise by recalling 35-year-old Boca Juniors striker Martin Palermo after a nine-year absence from the national side.
   Elsewhere, Chile can take a big step towards their first World Cup since 1998 with victory at home to Venezuela in Santiago, while Paraguay warm up for next week’s visit of the Albicelesti with a home match against Bolivia.
   Ecuador, Argentina’s biggest rivals for fourth place, visit Colombia, with rock-bottom Peru hosting Uruguay.
   The top four teams qualify automatically for the World Cup, with the team finishing fifth facing a play-off match against the fourth-placed team in North, Central America and Caribbean qualifying.
   
   Fixtures
   Saturday
   (Kick-off times in GMT)
   At Medellin
   Colombia v Ecuador (2030)
   At Lima
   Peru v Uruguay (2030)
   At Ascunsion
   Paraguay v Bolivia (2230)
   At Rosario
   Argentina v Brazil (0030 Sunday)
   At Santiago
   Chile v Venezuela (0130 Sunday)

Fourth seed Elena Demen-tieva and fifth seed Jelena Jankovic were upset victims Thursday at the US Open while top-ranked Dinara Safina struggled but is now the only seed still in her quarter of the draw.
   Russian stars Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova avoided the trend of shockers and breezed into the third round, but could feel the stress as Flushing Meadows favorites began to fall at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
   ‘You do sense it,’ Sharapova said. ‘I saw some of the tough matches. You dont want to be that person.’
   US teen Melanie Oudin shrugged off a sore left leg to stun 2004 US Open runner-up Dementieva 5-7, 6-4, 6-3, and leave the Russian still searching for her first Grand Slam crown.
   ‘For sure it was disappointing. I was hoping to play very well,’ Dementieva said. ‘She had a very good answer to me on the court. She was really playing at her best.’
   It was the earliest US Open exit by the Russian since 2002, sent off by a 17-year-old American with ‘believe’ written on her pink and yellow shoes.
   ‘I just played with no fear,’ Oudin said. ‘I just went out there and played my game and I came out with a win.’
   Yaroslava Shvedova, a 20-year-old Kazak ranked 55th in the world, outlasted former world number one Jankovic 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (8/6). The 2008 US Open runner-up blew two match points and lost to a Shvedova ace on match point.
   ‘It was great,’ Shvedova said. ‘I’m happy so much to be able to beat a great player in the big stadium.’
   After the match, the Serbian star said she was mourning the death of her grandmother Wednesday night and unable to focus.
   ‘My head wasn’t really there. It was like a shadow of myself,’ Jankovic said. ‘I tried to think about my tennis but I felt like I was so late and so slow. I was really suffering.
   ‘There are more important things in life than tennis. When you think about it, this is just a small event compared to somebody in your family who dies.’
   Top seed Safina, seeking her first Slam title, rallied to beat 67th-ranked German Kristina Barrois 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, 6-3. The Russian made 38 unforced errors and double faulted 15 times but endured a roller-coaster day to advance.
   As in a first-round narrow escape against Australian teen Olivia Rogowska, Safina lost the first set and went down an early break in the third.
   ‘Another tough day at the office,’ Safina said. ‘I don’t want to play three sets. Don’t think I want to lose the first set, be down a break in the third and fight through. I have to be more disciplined. I will work on it.’
   French Open champion Kuznetsova, the top remaining seed in her quarter of the draw, routed Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova 6-4, 6-2. The sixth seed whose other Slam crown came at the 2004 US Open never faced a break point.
   Sharapova, a former world number one back after right shoulder surgery, beat US teen Christina McHale 6-2, 6-1, and faces another US teen, Oudin, next.
   ‘At 22, you feel like you should be retired,’ Sharapova said. ‘That’s the sad truth.’
   Oudin, ranked 70th, had her left thigh taped early in the third set but ignored the pain to finish off Dementieva with a service winner on her third match point after two hours and 45 minutes.
   ‘Going into that last point I was thinking I might not get another chance so I just had to go for it with a big serve,’ Oudin said. ‘I was lucky it went in.’
   Oudin ranked her latest stunner above her third-round upset of Jankovic at Wimbledon.
   ‘This was pretty big,’ Oudin said. ‘I think it means more to me since it was the US Open, the crowd was cheering for me and I was struggling with my leg. The whole thing was so amazing.’
   Safina battled through to a third-round meeting with 72nd-ranked Czech Petra Kvitova, who ousted Italy’s 58th-ranked Tathiana Garbin 6-1, 6-3.
   Six of eight higher-ranked players lost in Safina’s section, the last of them 23rd-seeded Sabine Lisicki, who left the court in tears and a wheelchair.
   Aussie qualifier Anastasia Rodionova ousted Lisicki 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 but the German twisted her left ankle on the final swing of the match and crumpled to the court screaming in pain. She was wheeled off still wiping her eyes.
   Safina did nothing to silence critics who say Serena Williams is the top player today.
   Second seed Williams, the Australian Open and Wimbledon champion, continues her quest for a 12th Slam crown and second US Open title in a row Friday in a third-round match against Spain’s Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez while third seed sister Venus meets Slovakia’s Magdalena Rybarikova.

Leaders of the Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association of Bangladesh have decided to seek an appointment with the Bangladesh Cricket Board president, Lt General Sina Ibn Jamali, before taking a hard line over their pay cut.
   The decision came at an Ifter party of the association on Friday, which was also attended by two BCB directors, Ahmed Sazzadul Alam and GS Hasan Tamim.
   The BCB at its last meeting on August 18 decided that an A grade umpire from the national pool would receive Tk 12,000 for a first-class match instead of Tk 20,000, the amount they got in the last season.
   The remuneration of umpires of other grades and scorers for both first-class and one-day matches will also come down proportionately, the BCB decided. The umpires alleged that they were not even discussed by the officials before making the drastic pay cut.
   ‘We have told them (the directors) about our grievances and they advised us to go to the president before making any decision,’ umpires association president Kazi Yusha Mishu told New Age.
   ‘Hopefully he will realise the problem that the BCB cannot dishonour the umpires by slashing their honorarium. Otherwise we will make our decision,’ said Mishu, who is also a BCB councillor.

Canary Wharf UK vowed to continue its football project in Bangladesh as its first batch of students celebrated their three years of the four-year term with a 3-0 win over a Dhaka Selection XI at the Dhaka University playground on Friday.
   Zakir Khan, head of Canary Wharf community and sports affairs, was present to inspire his boys. The local coordinator of the academy, Fazlur Rahman Babul, was also present on the occasion. The students of the football academy had visited the David Beckham Academy and the Arsenal football academy in England last year.
   Zakir Khan looked satisfied with the progress. ‘The boys have made good progress and they look good with their improved physique and skills, I remember the time when they started the camp, they were physically weak, they have to continue the training to be good players,’ said Zakir.
   ‘Speaking about the project I feel satisfied that it has completed the third year, there is only one more year to go, it is a great feeling, my company is satisfied with the project and we will start the second one next year,’ said Zakir.
   Zakir was pleased with his boys London show.
   ‘They really played well and were beaten because of their inexperience, their performances pleased both the academies, David Beckham’s father spent a whole day with the boys and they promised continuous support to our academy,’ said Zakir.
   Zakir was thinking to select a group of footballers who have taken part in any football league or tournament. ‘I think it is better to start with boys who have played a little bit of competitive football, starting with totally raw boys is too hard,’ said Zakir.
   Zakir concluded by saying that a permanent academy is very much in the plan of the company but it depends on the success of its maiden project.

Clyde Butts, the West Indies’ chairman of selectors, has warned striking players to make themselves available for the region’s domestic one-day tournament next month or face exclusion from the ensuing tour of Australia. Butts was hopeful, though not certain, that the industrial dispute between the board and the players will be resolved before the touring squad to Australia is announced, but raised the possibility that another weakened side, such as that humbled by Bangladesh in July, could be named if the unofficial deadline is not observed.
   ‘The board is hoping to resolve this as quickly as possible,’ Butts told Cricinfo. ‘The board has asked the players to make themselves available for a domestic tournament from October 10, and if they do that, then I am confident we will have a strong squad for Australia. There has been a statement released about this.
   ‘If that doesn’t happen, then it depends on how the board views things. I believe there is a rule that players have to play in the domestic tournament preceding a tour to be considered. I am hopeful most, if not all, the players will make themselves available for that tournament and we can proceed as normal.
   ‘Certainly, it would be very difficult for a young team to go to a place like Australia and not have the senior players to rub shoulders with and learn from. I am hoping the impasse will have been resolved by then, but I just don’t know for sure. I am optimistic, however.’
   Butts, a former Test off-spinner, admitted that neither the players nor the board could afford a long-term continuation of their industrial dispute, from both a financial and general interest perspective. Since the likes of Chris Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan withdrew their candidacy for selection, West Indies have suffered embarrassing Test and one-day series defeats to Bangladesh and named a severely weakened side for this month’s Champions Trophy in South Africa.
   ‘This will probably go on for a little while yet (but) I don’t think West Indies cricket can afford to go down this road much longer,’ Butts said. ‘There isn’t a person in this region who doesn’t want to see their best players represent them, and the hope is that the impasse will soon be over so cricket can again be the winner.
   ‘It is difficult as chairman of selectors when you are unable to pick your best team. There is a concern about (players retiring to play Twenty20 cricket), but from the players I have spoken to that is not on the cards. Most want to play cricket for the West Indies and are looking forward to doing so again at some point in the future.’
   Butts added that Darren Powell’s withdrawal from West Indies’ Champions’ Trophy squad was due to injury, and not pressure exerted by WIPA, the players’ union. Powell, the most experienced member of West Indies’ original 15-man squad, has been replaced by uncapped fast bowler Kevin McLean.
   ‘As far as I know it was injury related,’ he said. ‘He hurt himself playing a game in Jamaica and that’s why he has had to pull out.’

AB de Villiers believes the ICC Champions Trophy presents South Africa with an ‘ideal opportunity’ to prove they are the best in the world. South Africa are currently No.1 in the ICC ODI rankings but their record in ICC tournaments has been below expectations, having only emerged triumphant in the inaugural Champions Trophy in 1998. They’ve reached the semi-finals of the competition each time except in 2004, appeared three times in the final four of the World Cup, qualified for the semis of the ICC World Twenty20 this year and were knocked out in the Super Six round of the same tournament at home in 2007. But de Villiers was confident his team would go the extra mile this time around.
   ‘We came short a few times, but there are many players in the team who are eager to improve,’ he told Beeld. ‘We believe we are the best team in the world and now is a good chance to prove that. It’s the ideal opportunity.’
   South Africa have hosted two ICC tournaments at home and have disappointed each time, but are training rigorously for the Champions Trophy which commences on September 22. They are currently in Potchefstroom, attending a training camp, and de Villiers admitted it’s the hardest they’ve been made to work.
   ‘It’s the hardest I have trained with this team,’ he said. ‘We run three or four times every day, attend net sessions, sweat in the gym and work on our fitness in the pool.’
   South Africa have played ten ODIs this year, all against Australia, winning seven and losing three. They’ve won both the ODI series against them, home and away, but will be playing their first ODI after a gap of more than four months. de Villiers said the intense preparation, which includes practice matches, was adequate for gearing up for the Champions Trophy. ‘We have not played much cricket in recent times, but have a few training games behind us,’ he said. ‘I believe we are all professional enough to gear ourselves mentally for the tournament.’
   One of the practice games de Villiers was referring to took place in Potchefstroom on September 3, with Johan Botha’s XI beating Jacques Kallis’ XI. JP Duminy was the star, making 68 in 78 balls with four boundaries. The match was a high-scoring encounter with both teams managing over 270, and coach Mickey Arthur said he was encouraged by the batting performances on a pitch that wasn’t too favourable. ‘The pitch was very slow which did not make conditions easy for the batsmen,’ he said. ‘I was very impressed with all our senior batsmen. Duminy looked as though he had never stopped playing from last season, AB de Villiers showed excellent intensity and Boucher confirmed what an outstanding power hitter he can be.’
   Arthur expected the tracks for the tournament to be similar. ‘Generally speaking I was very happy with what we got out of this game,’ he said. ‘The fact that we played on a slow pitch is no bad thing. I expect the pitches to be on the slow side for the start of the Champions’ Trophy as it is being played very early in the season and we will get more of the same for other upcoming tournaments such as next year’s ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean and the 2011 World Cup in the subcontinent.’

Dhaka Mohammedan Sporting Club with a view to achieve the highest possible endurance is working hard in a week long conditioning camp at Mymensingh. The players were satisfied with the calm and quiet atmosphere of the conditioning camp.
   The team, led by Arman Aziz, reached Mymensingh on August 31 and started their training session at the local Circuit House ground on September 1. The camp will continue until September 8.
   A total of 20 players including new recruits Emily, Wali Faisal, Mamun Miah, goalkeeper Paul from Liberia, Nasir and Mamunul Islam are taking part in the training session. Four more players including three foreigners and goalkeeper Aminul Islam will join the team soon. When asked about selecting Mymensingh as the training venue, skipper Arman Aziz said: ‘We chose Mymensingh as we thought we can train here without any disturbance. Training is hampered when we are in Dhaka as the players remain close to their families and have to do some family chores that affect their concentration. We never think other than lifting the trophy from the coming tournament. Our fans also think so.’
   Team manager Amirul Islam Babu said: ‘Mohammedan are always favourites and we want to maintain our domination.’
   Echoing the same views, AKM Maruful Haque, the coach of the team, said his players are better individually and he is trying to knit them into a unit.
   ‘Mymensingh is not very far from Dhaka and the environment here is better for intensive training,’ said the coach, who also hails from Mymensingh.

The Central Organising Committee of the World Cup 2011 has halved the budget than what Bangladesh had sought for the opening ceremony, a senior official of the Bangladesh Cricket Board said on Friday.
   Mahbub Anam, senior vice-president of the BCB, who attended the COC meeting in Mumbai on September 2, told reporters that the ICC has approved $5 million for the ceremony against Bangladesh’s demand of $10 million.
   Mahbub, however, expressed his optimism that a colourful opening ceremony is still possible with the amount. Bangladesh will host the opening ceremony on February 17, 2011.
   The COC has approved a budget of $115 million for the event to be jointly hosted by Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.

Emeka Christian Ibe, the hard working midfielder of Dhaka Abahani, may move to his old club Dhaka Mohammedan SC. Mohammedan officials claimed on Friday that they had already sent the air ticket to the player.
   Former Mohammedan striker and currently an official of the club, Nakib, confirmed that they have sent three tickets to South Africa for Alamu Bukola, Dammi Emmanule and Emeka. Bukola and Dammi played for the traditional black and white outfit last year but Emeka wore the sky blue shirt and he was an inspirational figure behind Abahani’s B League success.
   Abahani claimed that Emeka was all set to play again for them but Mohammedan lured the player with a better offer.

Hopes for a first home win in the men’s singles at the US Open in six years were given a boost on Thursday with Andy Roddick and rising star Sam Querrey leading a charge into the third round.
   Roddick, the fifth seed and the last American to win the title here in 2003, coasted through 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 against Frenchman Marc Giquel in a match that finished after midnight.
   The giant 21-year-old Querrey, who this summer has taken over as the US number two, defeated compatriot Kevin Kim 7-5, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4, 6-4 and is just two wins from a possible quarter-final match against top seed and title-holder Roger Federer.
   Joining Roddick and Querrey in the third round of the top half of the draw were former US No. 1 James Blake, who edged Olivier Rochus of Belgium 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-3, and another outsized US player in John Isner, who blasted past Turkey’s Marsel Ilhan 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7/1).
   Earlier, compatriot Jesse Witten, a 26-year-old qualifier playing in just his second Grand Slam event, defeated Maximo Gonzalez of Argentina 6-7 (3/7), 6-4, 7-5, 6-2.
   Next up for him will be fourth-seeded Serb Novak Djokovic, who had little trouble in seeing off Australian qualifier Carsten Ball 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.
   ‘I think we’ve got a shot,’ said Querrey of the American chances of a home win.
   ‘We’ve got Andy (Roddick) who has been in the top 10 for almost 10 years. Hopefully James (Blake) can get back up there. Hopefully Mardy (Fish) can get healthy.
   ‘I’m climbing up the rankings. John Isner is doing really well. Jesse Levine is in the second round. Jesse Witten is in the third round. There’s a big group of us here.
   ‘I think we can make it like it once was in the ‘90s.’
   Querrey was referring to the decade when Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier and Michael Chang were all in their prime and Americans won the US Open six times in 10 years.
   Another American failure in the men’s singles this year would make it six years in a row without a title, the worst winless run for home players since the Open era began in 1968.
   Roddick said of his upcoming third round clash with Isner: ‘John has been playing a lot better and it’s going to be a completely different matchup. It will come down to a couple of points here and there.’
   Early play on Thursday saw 10th seed Fernando Verdasco of Spain and 20th seed Tommy Haas of Germany set up an intriguing third-round clash.
   Verdasco, a semi-finalist in the Australian Open at the start of the year, brushed aside Florent Serra of France 6-3, 6-0, 6-3, while Haas was too good for American Robert Kendrick, winning 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3).
   The German, who has failed to get past the quarter-finals in New York in 12 previous appearances, said he expected a battle.
   ‘He’s obviously a very tough competitor and he’s been playing extremely well. It’s going to be a tough one,’ he said.
   ‘I look forward to that. I will try and play my best and play smart that day.’
   Also through to the third round was Russian eighth seed Nikolay Davydenko, who defeated Jan Hernych of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-1, 6-2. Davydenko was a semi-finalist here in 2006 and 2007.
   French Open finalist Robin Soderling of Sweden, meanwhile, needed just 16 minutes to clinch his second-round tie when opponent Marcel Granollers of Spain abandoned with a back strain after just two games.
   Top see Roger Federer reached the third round from the top half of the draw on Wednesday and he will play old foe Lleytwon Hewitt today as he seeks a record-equalling sixth straight US Open title.

France have received a boost prior to their key World Cup qualifier against Romania today with the news that Romanian striker Adrian Mutu has been ruled out of the game with a thigh injury.
   France trail European Group 7 leaders Serbia by five points and must win their game in hand against the Romanians if they are to stand any chance of overhauling the Serbs when the sides meet in Belgrade next Wednesday.
   Romania coach Razvan Lucescu called on Mutu in the hope that he would be able to shake off his injury, but the Fiorentina marksman failed a fitness test on Wednesday morning.
   France will hope to profit from his absence in Paris against the second-bottom team in the group, but it is in the goalscoring department, rather than the defensive sector, that they have struggled of late.
   In seven matches stretching back to November last year they have scored a meagre four goals, prompting sport daily L’Equipe to survey former French greats in a bid to identify the best player to lead the line against Romania.
   Luminaries including Jean-Pierre Papin and Dominique Rocheteau plumped for Toulouse striker Andre-Pierre Gignac, who top scored in Ligue 1 last season with 24 goals and netted the winner in the 1-0 win in the Faroe Islands in August. I’d put Gignac in, because he’s the man most in form at the moment,’ said Papin, who scored 30 times in 54 games for Les Bleus.
   ‘He scored twice in the Europa League and he’s the last one to have scored for France.’
   France’s need for goals will be aided by the return to injury of all-time record goalscorer Thierry Henry, while Karim Benzema will hope to make his first appearance since his 35 million-euro move from Lyon to Real Madrid.
   The 1998 World Cup winners have flattered to deceive since losing on penalties to Italy in the final of the 2006 tournament, crashing out of Euro 2008 at the group stage and stumbling down the path to South Africa.

Chelsea’s transfer ban over the signing of Gael Kakuta has sent shockwaves through world football, but the Blues are not the first English club to have been accused of theft by a French counterpart.
   For followers of the game in France, the Kakuta saga has followed a depressingly familiar pattern.
   The Lille-born youngster joined Lens at the age of eight and was a closely guarded secret at the northern club until Chelsea swooped in to snatch him in July 2007.
   It was an unwelcome case of deja vu for Lens, who had seen a similarly talented young wide player whisked away to London just a month earlier when Tottenham signed Morocco starlet Adel Taarabt.
   Taarabt came to Lens at the age of 11, but he too was tempted from the club by the promise of Premier League riches, joining Spurs on loan in January 2007 before sealing a permanent move five months later.
   He has enjoyed a fitful spell at White Hart Lane, delighting and frustrating in equal measure with his exuberant wing play, and is currently on loan at second-division Queen’s Park Rangers.
   The Premier League, though, is awash with talent that was carefully groomed in French academies before being lured across the English Channel at a young age.
   Benoit Assou-Ekotto, another Lens academy graduate, joined Spurs in 2006 after making only 60 appearances in the French league, while Newcastle’s acquisition of a teenage Charles N’Zogbia from Le Havre in 2004 landed the English club at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
   Acrimonious circumstances accompanied Mathieu Flamini’s 2004 move to Arsenal from Marseille, while Liverpool plucked both Florent Sinama-Pongolle and Anthony Le Tallec from the Le Havre academy in one fell swoop in 2001.
   FIFA’s ruling on the Chelsea-Kakuta case has been widely applauded in France. ‘I’m happy for French football and for the French development system,’ said Jean-Pierre Louvel, president of the Union of Professional Football Clubs and also of Le Havre.
   ‘I’m equally happy for Lens. I think it gives a strong signal to English clubs, notably Chelsea, who haven’t yet understood that there are rules and that they have to respect both young players and their clubs.’
   France’s thoughtfully structured youth coaching system is one of Europe’s best and a great source of national pride.
   Clubs in the French top flight are not averse to selling their best home-grown players to foreign sides, but only when they have had a chance to establish themselves as first-team players.
   Even Lyon, French champions for seven years in a row between 2002 and 2008, have allowed Michael Essien, Eric Abidal, Mahamadou Diarra, Florent Malouda and Karim Benzema to move overseas in recent years.
   ‘We spend five million euros on our academy every year, out of a turnover of 12 million euros. It is a huge investment,’ said Le Havre managing director Alain Belsoeur, whose club have accused Manchester United of illegally poaching France Under-16 captain Paul Pogba earlier this summer.
   ‘We do that to give our players a chance to develop for our first team, not to be an academy for others. What is the point of investing in an academy if the players leave at 16?’

Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson lamented Friday that simulation by players had crept into English football in recent years, after top European coaches agreed to try to root it out.
   ‘It’s a very difficult area. In my experience in English football over the past 15 years it has crept into the game, there’s no doubt that’s not acceptable,’ he told journalists.
   Ferguson, one of the participants in the Elite Club Coaches Forum at European football’s governing body UEFA said it was one of the top general issues raised at the meeting.
   ‘We all agreed that education is the best way forward, from the youth team to the first team,’ he said.
   ‘No one coach is proud that players simulate to get a decision,’ Ferguson added, especially because of its impact on youngsters.
   Arsenal announced on Thursday that they will appeal against UEFA’s decision to ban their striker Eduardo for two matches for allegedly diving to win a penalty against Celtic in a Champions League qualifier and ‘deceiving the referee’.
   UEFA Technical Director Andy Roxburgh said Eduardo’s specific case was not discussed during the forum, in which Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger also took part.
   Asked about the Eduardo sanction, Ferguson described it as a ‘big example,’ even though he agreed with Arsenal’s stance in protecting its players and the difficulty of identifying the limits to disciplining simulation.
   ‘It’s always difficult because I see it every week now, I see some guy dive,’ Ferguson acknowledged.
   ‘They (referees) can’t pick every instance, it’s impossible, there’d be no players left, but that’s the way it’s going.’
   However, Ferguson insisted that high profile cases had to be tackled.
   ‘UEFA’s position, and I tend to agree with it, is that there’s such a high profile competition now, that we have to make sure it’s done in the fairest possible way.
   ‘In the moral high ground, I have to agree that something needs to be done. I wouldn’t be pleased if my player did that, but I wouldn’t say it in public.’
   Roxburgh said the experimental use of two extra match officials on the touchline in this season’s Europa League might help referees spot cases of simulation and act as a deterrent.

John Dyson was sacked as West Indies coach because he hadn’t signed a contract during his 18-month stint, a senior WICB official has said.
   Conde Riley, a director of the board from Barbados, said that they had been left with no option but to sack Dyson, who left his position last month following Test and one-day series defeats against Bangladesh.
   ‘People would say we were weak, or that he should not have started to work, but there were two CEOs who were employed with Dyson, who were trying to get [him to sign],’ Riley told a press conference in Barbados on Tuesday. ‘We discussed it last November in Antigua. Dyson was at that meeting, and then the team was off to New Zealand, came back, played against England and Bangladesh, and the directors took a decision.
   ‘It is a very unsafe position to be in when people don’t sign contracts and you are paying them in accordance with the provisions of the contract. When an employee has not signed a contract for 18 months, he cannot be serious and therefore you don’t have to have a reason [for termination] - it’s a straightforward case.’
   Dyson has yet to speak about his departure, while assistant coach David Williams has been put in charge of the team for the Champions Trophy in South Africa. A shadow West Indies side will be taking part in the event after the selectors decided to show loyalty to the players who came in at short notice against Bangladesh.
   The side will be captained by Floyd Reifer, who told Cricinfo that he wants to help West Indies to a brighter future. ‘I see my role as trying to help rebuild West Indies cricket,’ he said. ‘We have a group of young players here who are trying to take West Indies cricket forward. They have shown commitment and dedication.’

Cris-tiano Ronaldo, the world’s most expensive footballer, faces a tense World Cup survival battle this weekend as Portugal, semi-finalists in 2006, desperately seek to prevent their 2010 campaign from suffering a humiliating derailment.
   Ronaldo is one of a host of superstars who have seen their national teams splutter through qualifying while 1998 champions France are also about to face a testing back-to-back examination.
   Portugal are third in Group One on nine points, trailing leaders Denmark by seven points and Hungary by four with four games left.
   Today, coach Carlos Queiroz, a former assistant to Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, takes his team to Copenhagen to tackle the Danes and then to Budapest next Wednesday.
   Only Europe’s nine group winners are assured of places in the finals; the eight best runners-up have to play-off.
   ‘We still have every chance of qualifying. None of us wants his only experience of the World Cup to be watching it on TV,’ Portugal striker Hugo Almeida told www.fifa.com.
   ‘We’ve dropped vital points, largely because we have a lot of new and young players in the team. We’re ushering in a new generation, and the process isn’t complete, but I’m certain we’ll pull it off.’
   Denmark coach Morten Olsen admits he is surprised by his team’s progress which has yielded five wins and a draw.
   ‘I think most people would have expected Portugal to be on top at this stage, especially as they’ve started with more home games,’ said Olsen, in charge for almost a decade.
   France, who welcome Romania to Paris, are second in Group Seven, five points behind Serbia but with a game in hand ahead of a testing trip to Belgrade on Wednesday.
   Despite boasting the likes of Thierry Henry, Karim Benzema and Nicolas Anelka, France have managed just four goals in seven matches since last November.
   Fans have made their dissatisfaction known, but coach Raymond Domenech has called for patience.
   ‘If they boo us at the end of the match because of the result, that doesn’t shock me,’ he said.
   ‘If I’ve paid to watch the game, I thought it was rubbish, I have the right to boo. But not during the match. At the very worst, you get up and you go.’
   Croatia, third-place finishers at the 1998 World Cup, are seven points behind runaway Group Six leaders England, who have a perfect record of seven wins in seven outings. They face Belarus before travelling to Wembley on Wednesday to take on Fabio Capello’s England, who face Slovenia in a friendly on Saturday.
   In Group Five, Spain also have a perfect record of six wins in six games and are six points clear of second-placed Bosnia Herzegovina with four games to go.
   A win over Belgium today coupled with a Bosnia loss at bottom side Armenia would see Spain go nine clear.
   ‘Saturday is a big game against Belgium but we know it will be difficult because it is their last chance (to qualify) if they beat us,’ said experienced midfielder Marcos Senna.
   Turkey, World Cup semi-finalists in 2002, are third in the group, 10 points behind Spain and four off second-placed Bosnia.
   ‘There are 12 points still to play for and I don’t think Bosnia will take all of them,’ said Turkey striker Nihat Kahveci.
   World champions Italy lead Group Eight by one point from Ireland and have a game in hand.
   Italy go to Georgia while Ireland are in Cyprus, who still harbour outside hopes of making the play-offs while, in Group Four, Russia look to cut the gap on leaders Germany to just one point with a win at home over Liechtenstein.
   Holland are the only team in Europe who have already made sure of qualifying with a perfect 21 points from seven matches leaving Macedonia and Scotland, who are second and third respectively, 14 points behind, to battle for a potential play-off spot.
   They meet in Glasgow on Saturday with the Scots still smarting from their recent 4-0 defeat in Norway.
   Terry Butcher, who is manager George Burley’s assistant and who captained England to a 1990 World Cup semi-final in Italy, says a Scotland win would be his finest moment in football.
   ‘I’m not being flippant, but after everything we have gone through in this campaign, this means as much to me now as any game I ever played in - just as much as a World Cup semi-final.’
   
   Fixtures
   Saturday
   (Kick-offs in GMT)
   Group One
   Denmark v Portugal (1800)
   Hungary v Sweden (1800)
   Group Two
   Israel v Latvia (1800)
   Moldova v Luxembourg (1700)
   Switzerland v Greece (1830)
   Group Three
   Poland v Northern Ireland (1830)
   Slovakia v Czech Republic (1830)
   Group Four
   Azerbaijan v Finland (1500)
   Russia v Liechtenstein (1600)
   Group Five
   Armenia v Bosnia-Herzegovina (1500)
   Spain v Belgium (2000)
   Turkey v Estonia (1800)
   Group Six
   Croatia v Belarus (1830)
   Ukraine v Andorra (1400)
   Group Seven
   Austria v Faroe Islands (1830)
   France v Romania (1900)
   Group Eight
   Bulgaria v Montenegro (1730)
   Cyprus v Republic of Ireland (1830)
   Georgia v Italy (1800)
   Group Nine
   Iceland v Norway (1845)
   Scotland v Macedonia (1400)

Brazi-lian star Kaka remains hopeful he will be crowned the best soccer player in the world again. For now, he acknowledges Lionel Messi deserves that title.
   ‘He is a player who makes a difference,’ Kaka said on Thursday, just two days before meeting Messi in a World Cup qualifier between South American rivals Brazil and Argentina. ‘I would vote for him for all he has done, leading Barcelona to all these titles.’
   Messi has never won FIFA’s Player of the Year Award but he is considered a front-runner for this year’s title. Kaka won it in 2007 and has always said his goal was to earn the prize again.
   ‘It remains my objective to get back there and win it,’ the Real Madrid midfielder said.
   Kaka dismissed the notion that a duel with Messi will unfold in today’s qualifier at Rosario.
   ‘The media always talks about a duel, that was the case with me and Cristiano Ronaldo, too,’ Kaka said. ‘But on the field it’s not like that. It will be Brazil vs Argentina and both teams have several talented players on both sides.’
   Kaka, who will be making his 70th appearance for Brazil, said he sees himself with a little of the ‘art’ of Argentina coach Diego Maradona and some of the ‘efficiency’ of Brazil coach Dunga.
   ‘I opted for a mix so I can be a complete player,’ Kaka said. ‘I’m not a great artist like Maradona was, I know my limitations and that talent alone is not enough. The ideal is to mix art and efficiency.’
   Kaka is one goal shy of tying Romario and Zico as Brazil’s leading scorers in World Cup qualifiers with 11 goals.
   ‘It would be special to do it against Argentina,’ he said. ‘But there still are four matches left and hopefully I’ll be able to reach that mark, which would be nice because I’m not really a true striker.’
   Kaka said he was anxious about Real Madrid’s upcoming encounter with former club AC Milan in the group stage of the Champions League.
   ‘It will be the first time I play against a former club, so I don’t know how it’s going to be,’ Kaka said. ‘It’s going to be a bit hard to play at San Siro (stadium), where the fans supported me for six years of my life and now they will be cheering against me.’
   Kaka said Real Madrid has a ‘very talented’ group with ‘impressive’ players in all positions, but it still needs to improve in order to play up to its full potential.
   ‘We have to improve a lot,’ Kaka said. ‘We need these talented players to become a group and achieve good results.’

Wayne Rooney insists he is ready to shoulder the burden of being England and Manchester United’s main man in the biggest season of his life.
   Rooney spent much of last season playing second fiddle to Cristiano Ronaldo at United and was often dispatched out to the left-wing by Sir Alex Ferguson to allow his team-mate the freedom to run riot up front.
   But Ronaldo’s departure to Real Madrid has given Rooney the opportunity to return to his favoured central striking role.
   Any doubts that Rooney was up to the task of leading United’s attack have been erased as he scored five times in the champions’ first five matches.
   But carrying United isn’t the only weight on the 23-year-old’s shoulders.
   England host Slovenia in a friendly at Wembley today ahead of Wednesday’s crucial World Cup qualifier against Croatia and Rooney will expected to use both matches to underline why coach Fabio Capello has built his team around the former Everton star.
   Victory over the Croatians would secure England’s place at next year’s finals and start the countdown to another attempt to end the country’s long wait to win the tournament for the first time since 1966.
   If Rooney feels any pressure at the thought of being England’s figurehead in South Africa, he didn’t betray it.
   ‘With Cristiano and Carlos (Tevez) leaving it is a big challenge at United to retain the league and personally I’ve stated I want to score more goals,’ Rooney said.
   ‘Then there’s the World Cup at the end of the year so I think it’s definitely going to be my biggest year.
   ‘I’ve said before that I started playing when I was 16. Since then there’s been expectations and pressure. I’ve no problem with that. I see it as a challenge.
   ‘I’m playing the best football I’ve played for England over the last year. I’m really enjoying myself with United and hopefully United and England will benefit from that.’
   While it has taken Ronaldo’s sale to persuade Ferguson to return Rooney to the fulcrum of his attack, Capello decided he could trust the fiery forward from the moment he took charge.
   For several seasons, Rooney appeared to have lost enthusiasm for international football as England laboured under Sven Goran Eriksson and Steve McClaren.
   A long goal drought in competitive England matches emphasised Rooney’s malaise, but Capello has reinvigorated the United star’s passion for his country.
   ‘He’s probably the first England manager I’ve played under where you know there is a chance you will be dropped if you don’t play well,’ Rooney said.
   ‘From his presence when he first arrived, it was clear for everyone to see he is strong, passionate and wants to win.
   ‘He explains clearly what he wants you to do and how he wants us to play. In training you get filmed and then watch the videos later to see any mistakes.
   ‘He keeps all the players on their toes. It has definitely helped me.’
   Now Rooney is back at the centre of the action for club and country, he would love to settle an old score against Croatia, who stopped England qualifying for Euro 2008 with a win at Wembley two years ago.
   ‘If we can turn it round at Wembley, just two years later and beat them to qualify for the World Cup, it would be a very sweet moment for us,’ said Rooney.
   Capello will use the Slovenia match to assess whether Robert Green or Ben Foster should start in goal against Croatia.
   The Italian will also have to decide if Emile Heskey or in-form Jermain Defoe should partner Rooney, but may rest defender John Terry to avoid aggravating a slight knock that kept his captain out of training earlier this week.

Diego Maradona, Carlos Quieroz and George Burley were rarely spoken of in the same breath as players, but they are all now united by fear of World Cup failure as coaches.
   Maradona may enjoy the lingering status of national hero in Argentina, having memorably led the ‘albiceleste’ to glory on the pitch in 1986.
   As coach, however, the road has been a bumpy one in the 11 months since he succeeded Alfio Basile, thanks above all to a 6-1 hiding away to makeweights Bolivia but also a June loss in Ecuador which left Maradona’s men in the fourth and final qualifying place in South America.
   After an initial bolstering of national sentiment on Maradona’s arrival, the Argentinians have actualy slipped below the third place in which they sat when predecessor Basile quit in the wake of a loss to Chile.
   Fast forward four matches and the two-times champions are five points behind the Brazilians, four adrift of Chile, two behind Paraguay and only two clear of Ecuador.
   And if Queiroz and Burley think their situation is precarious with Portugal and Scotland, Maradona could be forgiven for worrying as his team next face Brazil on Saturday.
   Should the Brazilians win in Rosario, Argentina could face a humiliating failure to reach the finals in South Africa.
   ‘I’ve been thinking about this game for some time - I’d like so much to be out there myself playing,’ Maradona admitted.
   Star man Lionel Messi, whom Maradona has long anointed as his on-pitch heir, insists the hosts will not be found wanting.
   ‘We know it will be a tough game - they have great players. But so do we, so we can definitely win it. We know what is at stake.’
   If history is on Maradona’s side - Argentina have not failed to qualify since 1970 - the burden of expectation weighs no less heavy on fellow under-pressure coaches Queiroz and Burley, while France’s Raymond Domenech’s future is by no means clear.
   Portugal have enjoyed a relative purple patch in recent years with their run to the final of Euro 2004 on home soil and the World Cup semis two years later, but the 2010 team are struggling and that could mean curtains for former Real Madrid coach and ex-Manchester United assistant boss Queiroz.
   With four games to go the ‘Seleccao’ are seven points adrift of group leaders Denmark with just four games to go with only the group winners guaranteed a place in the finals.
   Before the Portuguese think of wielding the axe they may reflect that the Danes have come back to form under Morten Olsen, a man the Scandinavians have stuck with through thick and thin for nine years.
   Star man Cristiano Ronaldo admits that the Portuguese ‘are really feeling the pressure. That’s normal given what is at stake - but Portugal will be at the World Cup,’ the Real Madrid man told AS sports daily in Spain.
   Burley’s Scotland, once regular participants but who last reached the finals in 1998, are struggling and take on Macedonia hoping to stay in sight of a potential play-off place as Holland have already run away with their group.
   Criticism rained down on Burley after last month’s 4-0 pasting in Norway which left the Scots third behind the Macedonians on goal difference.
   Burley’s assistant Terry Butcher, who captained England to a 1990 World Cup semi-final, defended the coach on Thursday.
   ‘I’m gutted for George in terms of the criticism. He lives for football, sees it the way he wants and disregards everything else. He just focuses on the job.’
   But anything less than three points and the job may not be there much longer.
   The possibility of a change of employment also hangs over French handler Domenech as Les Bleus host Romania needing a win to stay on the tails of leaders Serbia, whom they trail by five points - albeit with a game in hand.
   French fans booed the side following a February home friendly loss to Maradona’s Argentina and sports daily L’Equipe says supporters have ‘fallen out of love’ with their team.
   ‘It’s a national principle,’ scoffed Domenech regarding the booing. ‘One or several idiots start shouting out insults and the rest do the same without knowing why.’
   Domenech insists that ‘I have an affinity with the players,’ and shrugs off his public persona of a man who has to bear adversity and approbrium on his shoulders.
   ‘If people chucked things at me, then I would start to ask myself some questions, though when I take the metro I’m not attacked...’

John Terry has admitted he was stunned by FIFA’s decision to ban Chelsea from signing any new players until January 2011.
   The Chelsea skipper, currently on England duty, said he had been taken completely by surprise by Thursday’s announcement of a ban that has been imposed over the club’s alleged ‘tapping up’ of French youngster Gael Kakuta.
   ‘It was a big shock for me,’ the England defender said Friday. ‘I’ve spoken to the club about it this morning and they are appealing. Beyond that it is not something I can speak about today. There will be an appeal and it is ongoing.’
   England’s head coach Fabio Capello did not have any concerns about the transfer ban distracting Terry, Frank Lampard or Ashley Cole, the two Chelsea players in his squad for Saturday’s friendly against Slovenia and Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier against Croatia.
   ‘All the players are focused on the next game—I haven’t spoken to the Chelsea players about this,’ the Italian said. ‘This is a problem for the people that deal with these things, not the players and the manager.’
   Terry meanwhile confirmed that he has won his battle to be fit for the Slovenia match, describing himself as ‘ready to go and 100 percent’ after coming through a full training session on the eve of the friendly.
   The centreback had been struggling with a knock he received earlier in the week but confirmed he would be fit to lead Capello’s team out in a warm-up for the meeting with Croatia, in which a win will book England’s place in next year’s finals.
   Manchester United defender Wes Brown and back-up goalkeeper Paul Robinson also played a full part in the session after recovering from their respective niggles.
   Brown’s team-mate Ben Foster, who is hoping to establish himself as Capello’s first-choice goalkeeper, missed the session after his pregnant partner went into labour.
   Foster was expected to rejoin the squad on Friday evening but West Ham’s Robert Green will start his fourth consecutive international on Saturday.
   David James, who was Capello’s number one goalkeeper up until the end of last season, has missed out on recent squads as a result of close-season surgery and a subsequent injury which has prevented him from playing for Portsmouth.
   Capello would not be drawn on his selection plans although he did confirm that he intended to use six substitutes in the match to assess his options for the Croatia game.
   With Rio Ferdinand injured, the Italian must choose between Matthew Upson and Joleon Lescott as a centreback partner for Terry as well as the best striking partner for Wayne Rooney.
   Capello insisted he was focusing solely on beating Slovenia but Terry admitted that the Croatia clash was looming large in the minds of the England players.
   Slaven Bilic’s side’s last visit to Wembley saw them deny England a place at the finals of Euro 2008 and Terry, who missed that defeat through injury, said the players were keen to make amends.
   ‘It’s difficult not to think about it but the manager has emphasised the game on Saturday to get the best out of Wednesday,’ Terry said.
   ‘It was a disappointing night the last time they were here and that is in the back of our minds. But we don’t go in with a revenge mentality.’

The pressure is on Italy’s misfiring strikers ahead of the world champions’ trip to Georgia in a World Cup qualifier today.
   Italy lead Group Eight by a single point from Republic of Ireland, who have also played a game more.
   The world champions play Georgia in Tblisi today and then host Bulgaria in Turin on Wednesday.
   If they were to win both matches and the Republic were to lose to Cyprus at the weekend, Italy would have booked their trip to South Africa with two matches remaining.
   However, the country’s strikers have not found the net in their last three matches - defeats to Egypt (1-0) and Brazil (3-0) at the Confederations Cup in June and a 0-0 friendly draw in Switzerland last month.
   It means that despite their healthy group position, there is a palpable sense of worry around the Italy camp.
   Part of that has been created by the local media who have been clamouring for the inclusion of enigmatic Sampdoria striker Antonio Cassano, once again overlooked by coach Marcello Lippi, and Brazilian Amauri, who has taken Italian citizenship and is touting a call-up to his adopted homeland’s national squad.
   If anything it is adding to the pressure on the strikers currently in the group such as defiant Villarreal forward Giuseppe Rossi.
   ‘I’m not worried that people are calling for Cassano or Amauri, I’m just here to do my best,’ insisted the American-born, 23-year-old former Manchester United player.
   ‘They are two great players but these voices could fire me up more. I’m continuing on my own path.
   ‘I’m thinking only about doing and giving my maximum. It’s true that the attack has not scored in three matches but these things happen in football.
   ‘There isn’t a goalscoring problem and it’s not weighing on us. Up front we have many forwards who can score in any given moment and you’ll see in the next two games that that will be the case.’
   Rossi forced his way into the national set-up during June’s Confederations Cup, scoring twice in a 3-1 win over the United States and another in the 3-0 friendly victory against Northern Ireland before the tournament.
   And his captain Fabio Cannavaro has sprung to his defence although he said the youngster needs to move on to the next level.
   ‘I like Antonio (Cassano) as a player but it’s the coach’s choice and it should be respected,’ said Cannavaro.
   ‘Now we have Giuseppe Rossi and he needs to make a step up in quality. I’m not saying that to put pressure on him but he’s a player who knows how to score and create goals.
   ‘He’s 22 and in Spain people know about his talent. Now is the time to make a difference for the national team.’
   For Georgia, coached by Argentine former Valencia boss Hector Cuper, there is nothing more than pride at stake.
   They prop up the group with three draws and four defeats from seven matches, knowing qualification is impossible.
   Italy will be without suspended influential midfielder Daniele De Rossi for the trip to Georgia although he will be available against Bulgaria.

Rules should be put in place to stop European clubs buying Brazil’s best footballers during national championships, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said to AFP in an interview.
   ‘The stadiums are emptying in Brazil, the games are less interesting, and I am preferring to watch English, Spanish, Italian championships. I’m even watching the Russian and Turkish ones. Soon I’ll be watching Kazakhstan’s,’ he said in his official Brasilia residence on Wednesday.
   ‘Brazil 20 years ago was where the best football in the world was played. Today, the best football in the world is played in Spain, Britain, Italy, France, by players from Brazil, Argentina—Latin-American players,’ said the president, who declared himself a fan of Barcelona.
   The problem was that Brazil’s clubs were unable to go through a national championship without their best players being transferred abroad.
   That fate befell Lula’s favorite Brazilian club, Sao Paulo’s Corinthians, this year when four players were snapped up.
   The Brazilian leader, a longtime football fan, said he raised the problem with the national football federation boss, Ricardo Teixeira, and he would talk it over with FIFA chief Joseph Blatter when the latter visits Brazil on September 29.
   A good solution would be to match the European and Brazilian football calendars, he said.
   ‘I want a player who’s started a championship with one team to finish with that team. After that, he can go. Because between championships there’s time to rebuild a team,’ he said.
   While recognizing that many poor Brazilians dreamed of the riches European signings brought, ‘what worries me is that Brazil is losing its players when they’re 17, and they come back when they’re 32,’ Lula said.
   ‘Brazil can’t go on selling its kids and repatriating its retirees,’ he added.

Germany coach Joachim Low insists his team will impress in today’s friendly against South Africa as the national side look to improve their performance levels ahead of their World Cup qualifiers.
   ‘We are well aware that we disappointed our fans in recent games, as we failed to reach our full potential,’ admitted Low after his side struggled to a 2-0 win against minnows Azerbaijan last month.
   Germany play Azerbaijan again in a World Cup qualifier in Hanover next Wednesday, but face the biggest challenge of the campaign to reach the 2010 World Cup so far when they play Russia in Moscow on October 10.
   ‘Against South Africa and then against Azerbaijan, we need to control the action, we need to return to that dominance that has been the signature of our game in the past,’ said Low ahead of the clash with the World Cup hosts.
   ‘I feel certain that we will succeed.’
   Since succeeding Jurgen Klinsmann as national coach in August 2006, Low has registered 28 wins, six losses and six draws as well as having reached the final of Euro 2008 when his team lost 1-0 to Spain in Vienna last June.
   Bayern Munich striker Mirsolav Klose is expected to make his 90th appearance for Germany in Leverkusen as he looks to add to the 45 goals he has scored for his country.
   South Africa and Germany have met three times so far: a scoreless draw in 1995 in Johannesburg, and a 3-0 home-win in Duesseldorf in 1997 before Germany won the last encounter in September 2005 in Bremen when Lukas Podolski scored three goals in a 4-2 win.
   South Africa coach Joel Santana has said his side may be under-dogs but they will not be overawed.
   ‘There are underdogs and there are giants, but the beauty of the game of football is that after the match has started anything can happen,’ said Santana, whose side are ranked 73rd in the world.
   ‘It will be a difficult match, but we are confident.’
   After finishing fourth in the Confederations Cup last June, Santana says his team are almost ready for the World Cup next year.
   And South Africa captain Aaron Mokoena said his team are taking the match very seriously and are eager for the opportunity to attempt an upset, despite a few injuries.
   ‘The Germans are experienced, but I think we have what it takes to face them and we will have to show our mettle,’ said the Portsmouth star.

After a perfect six wins Spain are closing in on qualification for the 2010 World Cup and can move a step closer to South Africa with a win over Belgium in La Coruna today.
   Spain currently sit six points clear of second-placed Bosnia Herzegovina in qualifying Group 5 with four games to go and a win over Belgium on Saturday coupled with a Bosnia loss at bottom side Armenia would see Spain nine points clear with three games left.
   This would probably be celebrated as qualification, though one of Spain’s final three games is against Bosnia, meaning qualification would not be 100 percent certain.
   If Bosnia drop a single point in their next two qualifiers, away to Armenia and at home to Turkey, Spain can guarantee qualification by winning their next two qualifiers against Belgium at the Riazor Stadium today and then Estonia in Merida four days later.
   ‘I think we are close to qualifying and the good thing is we are top of our group and have our destiny in our own hands,’ said Villarreal defender Joan Capdevila.
   National coach Vicente del Bosque, in charge for just over a year, has been boosted by the return of experienced midfielder Marcos Senna, 33, who is back in the fold after five months on the sidelines.
   Del Bosque claims Senna, a key figure in the Euro 2008 success, provides the team with balance and the Brazilian-born player is glad to be back.
   ‘It has been a long time and I have missed being with my team-mates,’ said Senna. ‘When you are on the outside you suffer much more because it is a lot of fun playing in this team.
   ‘Saturday is a big game against Belgium and we know it will be difficult because it is their last chance (to qualify) if they beat us.’
   Belgium have just seven points but a victory would give them an outside shot of a runner-up spot and a chance to reach South Africa via the play-offs.
   ‘On one hand they need to win as they want to go to the World Cup but on the other hand they are away from home so I don’t know how they will approach the game,’ admitted Senna. Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas is another midfielder back in contention after recovering from a hamstring injury that sidelined him for the 2-1 defeat to Manchester United last Saturday.
   Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta and Real Madrid full-back Sergio Ramos are the two big-name absentees but otherwise Spain are at full strength.
   Belgium must somehow find a way to stop in-form striker David Villa, who has scored 13 goals in as many months and is closing in on Spain’s all-time record goal-scorer Raul.
   Real Madrid striker Raul scored 44 goals in 102 games while Villa has 31 in just 50 games.

Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro said Thursday he has been impressed with two new additions to Serie A since he himself left the championship in 2006.
   Cannavaro is back with Juventus this season after spending three years with Real Madrid, whom he joined after Juve were relegated to Serie A for match-fixing.
   Since he left Jose Mourinho has joined Inter Milan as coach and just before his return to Turin, Brazilian playmaker Diego also joined the club known as the ‘Old Lady’.
   And it is those two characters that have most impressed the veteran World Cup winning captain and former world player of the year.
   ‘I like Mourinho because he is intelligent. When his team are in difficulty he’s very good at focussing the attention on himself,’ said Cannavaro. ‘What I don’t like is that when he talks it seems like it’s the law. Maybe that’s because, especially when there’s little to write about, the media is happy to give him prominence.’
   Cannavaro has been even more pleased with his team’s new star Diego, who he believes is destined to emulate his own individual achievements. ‘He is an atypical attacking midfielder, he’s difficult to knock off the ball, it shows that he’s played in Germany,’ he said of the former Werder Bremen player.
   ‘He’s very good at playing in the spaces, with him teams are going to have to go back to man-marking.
   ‘I hope that in a year’s time he wins the Golden Ball.’ That was an award that Cannavaro himself won in 2006 following Italy’s World Cup triumph.

Wayne Rooney has reacted to suggestions that he dived to win a penalty in Manchester United’s win over Arsenal last weekend by insisting he is an honest player.
   Rooney earned and converted the spot-kick that brought United level against the Gunners when he tumbled under goalkeeper Manuel Almunia’s challenge.
   Almunia had rushed from his line and appeared to catch Rooney, but television replays showed that the England star may have started to fall before there was any contact.
   In the aftermath of Arsenal striker Eduardo’s two-match ban for deceiving the referee to win a penalty against Celtic, Rooney felt compelled to defend himself when questioned on the issue of cheating ahead of England’s friendly against Slovenia on Saturday.
   ‘Everyone who watches me play knows I am an honest player,’ Rooney said here Thursday. ‘I play the game as honestly as I can.
   ‘If the referee gives a penalty there is nothing you can do. It is a penalty.
   ‘If they want to take punishment further it is down to UEFA and the people who run the game. As players you just want to play.’
   Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is considering an appeal against Eduardo’s suspension, but even the French coach couldn’t defend a more blatant display of theatrics from Emmanuel Eboue, who was booked for diving during the United match.
   Yet Rooney does not believe the problem is any worse now than it has been in the past.
   ‘Diving has been in the game for years,’ he said. ‘Probably the coverage the game gets now, with all the cameras around, it gets highlighted a bit more. But it hasn’t got any worse.’
   Rather than rely on TV evidence to retrospectively punish divers, Rooney feels the referee is still the best person to deal with such issues at the time.
   ‘It is difficult to prove,’ he said. ‘You see some that should not have been penalties but get given and others that are clear and do not.
   ‘The decisions are down to the referee. It is a difficult job but they do the best they can.’
   Rooney does feel players have a role to play as well because divers are not just cheating the opposition, they are duping the fans as well.
   ‘England has always had a good record of being honest,’ he said. ‘It is important you try and play honestly.
   ‘You don’t like to see anyone cheating. It is not fair on the fans or the opponents.’

   Arsenal announced on Thursday that they will mount an appeal against UEFA’s decision to ban their striker Eduardo for two matches for allegedly diving to win a penalty against Celtic in a Champions League qualifier.
   UEFA, European football’s governing body, ruled on Tuesday that the Croatian striker had been guilty of ‘deceiving the referee’ by tumbling as Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc dived at his feet during last week’s second leg of the play-off tie.
   Television replays appeared to indicate that Boruc had not made any contact with the forward. Eduardo converted the resulting penalty to open the scoring and Arsenal went on to win the match 3-1, advancing to the group stage of the tournament 5-1 on aggregate.
   Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has described UEFA’s actions as tantamount to a ‘witch hunt’ and the club confirmed on Thursday that they would be seeking to have the sanction overturned.
   ‘The club is in receipt of UEFA’s reasoned decision in relation to the charge against Eduardo,’ a statement said.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is considering the creation of a Disneyland-style theme park dedicated to the Spanish giants, according to press reports here on Friday.
   The park, which Perez hopes will attract up to three million visitors a year, would be situated near the club’s training grounds at Valdebebas, north-east of the capital, sports daily AS reported.
   The cost of undertaking such a project is estimated at 150 million euros (214 million dollars) with Real having already spent 100 million euros on their new Valdebebas training centre where they plan to construct a new basketball centre.
   Perez is reported to have contacted city officials in Beijing and Miami to propose local offshots of the theme park devoted to Real Madrid, which could prove popular with the club’s fans in China and the United States.
   The Madrid club, whose estimated budget this year is expected to top 415 million euros, have already splashed out 250 million euros on new players. They sold their former training ground near the city centre in 2001 for nearly 500 million euros.

Brazil forward Robinho insisted Friday that he was not dropped against Portsmouth but asked to be left out of the Premier League tie ahead of his country’s international with Argentina.
   Mark Hughes’ decision to leave Robinho on the substitutes’ bench for last Sunday’s 1-0 win at Fratton Park surprised many.
   However, Robinho says it was his decision to be left out so he could instead concentrate on getting fully fit for the upcoming international fixture.
   On Saturday the two South American giants go head-to-head in a World Cup qualifier, with Argentina struggling to book a place for South Africa 2010.
   ‘I asked to not play because I had pains in the ankle, especially because Brazil against Argentina is more important,’ he is quoted as saying in the Daily Express.
   ‘It is always a special match because of the rivalry of the two teams. No one ever wants to lose. Every player likes to play in these matches.’

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson said Thursday that he hopes French Under 21 international Gabriel Obertan will be fit enough to make his debut by next month.
   Obertan cost three million pounds from Bordeaux in the summer, but has been sidelined because of a spinal injury.
   ‘Gabriel has had a spine problem but I think he will be back in a month to six weeks’ time,’ Ferguson told Inside United.
   ‘We are taking our time with him because we want him back and 100 per cent. He is very quick, can play wide both sides and through the middle so he brings a real versatility to us. We expect big things from him.
   ‘At 16 he was one of the outstanding talents in Europe. But he has been playing with this back injury for a year and a half and no-one thought about getting a scan.’

Brazil star Kaka said Thursday he believes Argentina will crack under pressure when the old rivals meet today in their World Cup qualifier in Rosario.
   Argentina are only fourth in the regional group, five points behind the group-leading Brazilians, and only four teams go through automatically, hence Real Madrid star Kaka says the nerves will get to Lionel Messi and company as they go all out for the win they need to catch up.
   ‘They are going to start off a little tense and I think this can play in our favour. There are many ways in which we can try to exploit the fact the pressure is on Argentina,’ said Kaka.
   But he added it would be tough for both sides.
   ‘The game won’t be easy for anyone - with a Brazil v Argentina match there will be a number of top talents out there with players capable of swinging the match at any moment.’ ‘Our target is to beat Argentina and qualify for the World Cup. It would be ideal if Brazil could go through against Argentina,’ said Kaka, who will be winning his 70th cap.
   Kaka said he wanted to play down his duel with Barcelona’s Messi.
   ‘I would vote for him today (as world player of the year) for all that he won (last season) with Barcelona. I believe Messi is the big favourite to win the prize as FIFA’s best player this year.’

Germany captain Michael Ballack insisted on Friday that he had no hard feelings about national team-mate Lukas Podolski, who slapped him during a 2010 World Cup qualifier last April.
   The pair trained together on Friday for the first time since the incident, ahead of this weekend’s friendly against South Africa.
   ‘It was the first time that we were together again, because I didn’t participate in the tour of Asia (in June) and he wasn’t there against Azerbaijan (in August),’ said Ballack. ‘We’re two professional players, we both want to win trophies, we look ahead, there is no problem between us.’
   Podolski, voted the best young player of the 2006 World Cup, slapped the captain during a match against Wales in Cariff on April 1 after disagreeing over tactics.
   He later apologised and the German football federation announced that the striker would contribute 5,000 euros towards a fair play initiative organised by the federation. Germany play a World Cup Group Four qualifier against Azerbaijan on Wednesday.

Bayern Munich captain Mark van Bommel admitted Friday that he could be sidelined for longer than expected with a broken toe.
   ‘I still don’t know when I can return,’ the Dutch international told the Munich daily Abendzeitung.
   ‘There’s no chance it will be against Dortmund,’ he added, referring to Bayern’s next Bundesliga game on September 12.
   Van Bommel, 32, underwent surgery after breaking his toe in the opening Bundesliga game of the season and had initially expected to be sidelined for a month.
   The midfielder could however be fit for Bayern’s Champions League clash against Juventus on September 30.