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Gazi Tank Cricketers are set to challenge the supremacy of arch-rivals Abahani and Mohammedan Sporting Club in domestic cricket as the much-talked about inter-club players’ transfer begins today.
   Most of the clubs have already confirmed the services of their targeted players and are waiting to complete the signing formalities during the three-day players’ transfer at the BCB’s office at Bangabandhu National Stadium.
   In their quest for a fourth successive Dhaka Premier League title, Abahani already signed a Memorandum of Understanding with national team captain Mashrafee bin Murtaza and his deputy Sakib al Hasan paying a whopping Tk 20 lakh each.
   The reigning champions also roped in opener Imrul Kayes and pacers Robiul Islam and Mukhtar Ali while they retained the services of Rony Talukdar, Nasir Hossain, Sahgir Hossain and Shubhasis Roy.
   Abahani also retained the services of Mahbubul Karim and Mohammad Rafique, who both missed the last season due to their Indian Cricket League commitment.
   Mohammedan, who last won the Dhaka Premier League in 2001, have snatched Tamim Iqbal from the grip of Abahani and have also built a strong team that is capable of ending their long trophy drought.
   They include Mohammad Ashraful, Shamsur Rahman, Aftab Ahmed, Marshall Ayub, Mahmudullah Riyad, Khaled Mashud, Nabil Samad, Mohammad Shahzada, Delwar Hossain, Saqlain Sajib and Foysal Hossain.
   Sri Lankan cricketer Farveez Maharoof is set to add an additional impetus to the traditional giants. However, it will not be an easy ride for Mohammedan to regain the trophy as they face strong challenge not only from Abahani but also from Gazi Tank Cricketers.
   Gazi have three national pool players in Abdur Razzak, Naeem Islam and Nazmul Hossain, but the biggest strength of the side is believed to be the four ICL stars – Shahriar Nafees, Alok Kapali, Nazimuddin and Farhad Reza – who can serve the team for the whole season.
   In addition to that Gazi will also get Mohammad Mithun, Farhad Hossain, Sohrawardi Shuvo, Ziaur Rahman, Nadimuddin Mintu, Raihan Anas at their disposal. Club official Rakib Haider Pavel on Monday said they are also expecting the services of Pakistani cricketer Abdur Razzak from the very beginning of the league.
   Former champions Biman Bangladesh Airlines lost much of their strength, but still can be a serious threat for the title contenders with the likes of Mushfiqur Rahim, Mehrab Hossain, Tushar Imran, Jahirul Islam, Mosharraf Rubel, Tareq Aziz, Talha Jubaer, Sharifullah and Ellias Sunny.
   Kalabagan KC are set to reap the benefit of controversial pool system as they managed to recruit Roqibul Hasan, Shahadat Hossain and Enamul Haque Jr at a nominal price.
   Club official Riaz Babu hoped they can play Super League with Nazmus Sadat, Rasel al Mamun, Javed Omar, Golam Mabud, Ariful Haque, Shafaq al Jabir and Murad Khan also playing for them.
   Among the other clubs, Surjo Tarun are also going to have a decent squad, said club official Tanzeeb Ahsan Saad adding that Habibul Bashar, Hannan Sarkar, Rajin Saleh, Junaed Siddique, Mahbubul Alam, Dhiman Ghosh, Tapash Baishya, Imtiaz Hossain and Monjurul Islam will play for the Dhanmondi outfit.
   Transfers will take place from 4:00pm to 8:00pm on all three days.

After a 14-day break due to inclement weather and Eid-ul-Fitr the Citycell Federation Cup resumes today with Arambagh Krira Sangha facing Shuktara Jubo Sangsad at 3:00pm at the Bangabadnhu National Stadium. In the second match of the day, Chittagong Mohammedan SC will take on Rahmatganj MFS at the same venue.
   Only Dhaka Mohammedan have confirmed their last eight place after winning their two matches. The other slot from group A will be a hot one as both Brothers Union and Feni Soccer Club have won one match each. Brothers Union in a bid to boost their strength have brought in two Nigerian players – Ennok Bentil and Stephen Yeboah.
   In group B, Rahmatganj and Chittagong Mohammedan both have won one game but Shuktara and Arambagh have the power to turn the table in their remaining two matches.
   Sheikh Russell are level with Sylhet Biyanibazar on three points in group C but Russell top the group on goal difference after a fine 8-1 win against Bangladesh Army. Title contenders Dhaka Abahani struggled to a win 1-0 against Police in their opening group D encounter and they have flown in another two Ghanaians – Sherif Din Mohammed and Mohammed Awal – to wipe out their attacking deficiencies. Muktijoddha and Chittagong Abahani have played out the lone drawn match to date.
   
   Points table
   (Matches played, won, lost, goals for/goals against, points)
   Group A
   Dhaka MSC 2 2 0 0 11/1-6
   BU 2 1 0 1 3/7-3
   Feni Soccer 2 1 0 1 7/4-3
   BKSP 2 0 0 2 0/9-0
   
   Group B
   Rahmatganj 1 1 0 0 3/1-3
   Ctg MSC 1 1 0 0 2/1-3
   Shuktara 1 0 0 1 1/2-0
   Arambagh 1 0 0 1 1/3-0
   
   Group C
   Sheikh Russell 1 1 0 0 8/1-3
   Biyanibazar 1 1 0 0 1/0-3
   Farashganj 1 0 0 1 0/1-0
   Army 1 0 0 1 1/8-0
   
   Group D
   Abahani Ltd 1 1 0 0 1/0-3
   Muktijoddha 1 0 1 0 1/1-1
   Ctg Abahani 1 0 1 0 1/1-1
   Police 1 0 0 0 0/1-0

England stormed into the Champions Trophy semi-finals with a 22-run victory over South Africa who crashed out of the tournament despite captain Graeme Smith’s brave century here on Sunday.
   Smith hit a career-best 141 for his eighth one-day hundred but his team were still restricted to 301-9 while chasing a 324-run target.
   The defeat also eliminated the hosts, who needed 313 to stay ahead of Sri Lanka on net run-rate.
   ‘It’s hugely disappointing. I think it’s about giving your all, unfortunately we fell 22 runs short,’ said Smith.
   ‘Two of the games, we have given away over 300 runs. It’s difficult to chase that much regularly. You have to give credit to the way England batted. Anything around 300 we would have cruised in, but 324 was a step too far.’
   England have won both of their games in the four-team Group B, while South Africa and Sri Lanka finished their league engagements with one win apiece in three matches.
   New Zealand, who have one win in two matches, will take on England in the last group match on Tuesday.
   England owed their highest one-day total against South Africa to man-of-the-match Owais Shah and Eoin Morgan, who gave a superb exhibition of power-hitting. Shah smashed 98 off 89 balls, while Morgan cracked a 34-ball 67.
   ‘The way Paul Collingwood and Owais played the spinners was crucial, setting the platform for Morgan at the end. James Anderson (3-42) has been exceptional,’ said England captain Andrew Strauss.
   South Africa went for their shots early in their innings in a bid to achieve a stiff target, with Smith and Herschelle Gibbs putting on 42 in seven overs.
   Smith, dropped on 82 by Shah at long-on off seamer Collingwood, sustained his team’s hopes with a gutsy knock. He reached his century when he cut Collingwood for his 10th four.
   Smith, refused a runner after suffering from cramp later in his innings, put on 78 for the third wicket with AB de Villiers (36) and 64 for the next with Jean-Paul Duminy (24).
   But the asking-rate kept climbing as the hosts needed 94 to win in the closing 10 overs. It was all over when Smith fell in the 47th over after hitting 16 fours in his 134-ball knock.
   Shah was earlier in the limelight, putting England on course for a big total with a gem of an innings containing six sixes and five fours. He added a record 163 for the third wicket with Collingwood (82).
   England’s previous best for the third wicket against South Africa in one-day internationals was 114 between Marcus Trescothick and Anthony McGrath in Manchester in 2003.
   ‘I’d love to bat on this pitch everyday. It was a beautiful wicket to bat on,’ said Shah.
   The stage was set for the final onslaught after the Shah-Collingwood stand, with England plundering 92 in their last 10 overs.
   Like Shah, stand-in wicket-keeper Morgan also flayed the South African attack as he hit five sixes and four boundaries in his second successive half-century.
   England began aggressively after winning the toss as Strauss (25) and Joe Denly (21) added 48 for the opening wicket before falling in the space of three overs.
   But South Africa’s joy was short-lived as Shah and in-form Collingwood kept gathering runs comfortably against both pace and spin to put their team in a strong position.
   Shah was more aggressive of the two, playing handsome strokes all round the wicket. He was just two runs short of his second one-day century when he was caught behind off spinner Johan Botha.

Pakistan captain Younus Khan has said he was determined to play through pain in a big match against India in the Champions Trophy here on Saturday.
   Younus returned to lead the side despite not having recovered completely from a finger injury suffered during a warm-up match. He also missed his team’s opening match against the West Indies.
   ‘I felt the pain in my fingers when I fielded, but when you play for your country such things don’t really matter. Whether you have a broken skull or a broken hand it really doesn’t matter,’ he said after the match.
   Pakistan strengthened their chances of qualifying for the semi-finals with a 54-run victory over India in the four-team Group A, having already beaten the West Indies in their first match.
   They will now meet defending champions Australia in the final game here on Wednesday.
   ‘If I had not played and we lost I would have felt bad. But if I played and we lost then at least I would be able to tell my grandchildren that I played in this big game,’ said Younus.
   ‘The big thing is that we managed to beat India and did well in all departments of the game.’
   Younus said his team were keen to win the Champions Trophy, scheduled to be held in Pakistan last year before being shifted to South Africa due to security concerns.
   ‘It was our turn to host the Champions Trophy, so we want to do well. Our country needs big wins like this. I am sure all of Pakistan will be very happy. The timing is very good,’ said Younus.
   ‘The other thing is that we have never reached the final of this tournament. It is a good chance. Our country needs a few more trophies, like the Champions Trophy.’
   Younus, who led his team to the Twenty20 World Cup triumph in England this year, was all praise for man-of-the-match Shoaib Malik who smashed a solid 128 to set up his team’s victory.
   ‘Malik’s century was very good and I am sure everybody will be talking about his century,’ said Younus.

Bangladesh ‘A’ were all out for 147 runs in their first innings in the three-day match against Maharashtra Under-22 at Nasik in India on Monday.
   Resuming the second day’s play with 29 for two, the tourists never came to terms before they were finally bundled out, conceding a 68-run deficit on the first innings. Foysal Hossain, the last minute inclusion after Abdur Razzak opted out of the tour, made highest 45 runs.
   Maharashtra U-22s, who scored 215 runs in the first innings, however, hardly capitalised on their advantage as they lost five wickets for 85 runs in the second innings at the end of second day’s play. Talha Jubaer and Ziaur Rahman grabbed two wickets each for Bangladesh ‘A’ team.

Bangladesh U-16 football team will have a hard time in the group E qualifiers of the AFC U-16 Championship due to inadequate practice and preparation. The team is scheduled to fly to the Philippines in the early hours of October 1.
   Group E qualifiers will be held in Bacolod city, the Philippines, from October 3 to 13. The group contains Bangladesh, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Japan and hosts Philippines. The top two teams from each group and best third-placed side from groups A to G will qualify for the finals along with the top team of Group H.
   The team practised for full three days, but two of the players were absent in the camp on Monday, two days before their departure. The squad was not finalised till Monday with less than 48 hours remaining to catch the flight.
   Coach Zobayer Nipu was reluctant to reveal the facts. ‘All I can say is that I did not have enough time to prepare for a tournament of this calibre, I can only say that we will try to fight,’ said the coach.

The Kool National and Sub-Junior Badminton Championships start at the Pabna District Sports Association gymnasium on October 2. A total of 96 shuttlers including 19 females from 20 teams will participate in the five-day meet.
   Bangladesh Badminton Federation decided to host the meet outside the capital with a view to expanding the game. Sponsors Square Toiletries will provide Tk 3.5 lakh out of the estimated Tk 5 lakh budget.
   BBF general secretary Zobaidur Rahman Rana, vice-president Shibli Rubayatul Islam and head of marketing of Square Toiletries Md Saeed were present at the press briefing held at the NSC conference room on Monday.

England and New Zealand want to maintain run-rich form when they clash today at the Wanderers in the final Group B fixture of the ICC Champions Trophy.
   Dismissed with the West Indies as tournament no-hopers, England made 323-8 against hosts South Africa Sunday to become the first qualifiers for the semi-finals of the mini-World Cup.
   It was the highest tally so far in the one-day extravaganza, eclipsing the 319 made by Sri Lanka in the opening match en route to a surprise victory over South Africa.
   ‘That batting performance was the best I can remember from England. Owais (Shah) took control, clearing the boundary so many times, well backed up by Paul (Collingwood) and Eoin (Morgan),’ boasted skipper Andrew Strauss.
   ‘We can play the shots because of skills practice. The only problem sometimes is our mindset, whether we loosen the shackles and go out there and take the game to the opposition.’
   Shah, 98-run catalyst of the second highest Champions Trophy innings after the 347 posted by New Zealand against the United States at The Oval five years ago, echoed South Africa-born Strauss.
   ‘The Australia series was not good for our batsmen. Coming to South Africa our confidence was low. We needed to go out, play with freedom and express ourselves.’
   New Zealand also smashed the 300-run barrier Sunday against Sri Lanka, amassing 315-7 to win by 38 runs. Another victory against England will take them into the knockout phase of the four-million-dollar tournament.
   However, if the ‘Black Caps’ lose at the 30,000-capacity home of South Africa cricket, hyper-erratic Sri Lanka will cling to second spot on net run rate and squeeze through.
   England have been the revelation of the second most important national team ODI tournament after the World Cup, outplaying Sri Lanka and a South African team ranked number one in the world within 72 hours.
   They and Pakistan are the only countries never to have lifted the Champions Trophy since its introduction 11 years ago and a 6-1 series thrashing from Australia preceded the flight to Johanneburg.
   New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori finally saw his batsmen click against Sri Lanka, but 74-run lead scorer Jesse Ryder has been ruled out of the tournament by a hamstring strain.
   Lady luck has jilted the Kiwis, who choose from a limited base, as bowler Jacob Oram also had to return home early through injury and has been replaced by James Franklin.
   Vettori shrugged off the blows: ‘At least we hold our fate in our own hands. If we defeat England we reach the semi-finals and if we lose we go home. We are ready.’
   After worrying about an inability to build partnerships, New Zealand concerns now centre on fast bowler Shane Bond, whose 9-0-82-0 figures Sunday followed an almost equally unflattering return against South Africa.

England captain Andrew Strauss has defended his decision to disallow his South African counterpart Graeme Smith a runner during a Champions Trophy match here on Sunday.
   Smith suffered from cramp during the later part of his career-best 141 when refused a runner during his team’s 22-run defeat in a high-scoring match. The defeat also knocked the hosts out of the competition.
   South Africa needed 313 to stay ahead of Sri Lanka on net run-rate and avoid elimination, but could manage only 301-9 in reply to England’s 323-8.
   ‘He asked me for a runner because he was cramping. The umpires were not particularly keen to give him one. I felt that at the end of a long game, after a long innings, you’re going to be tired,’ said Strauss.
   ‘Cramping to a certain extent is a preparation thing. To a certain extent, it’s a conditioning thing. I didn’t feel that he merited having a runner at that stage.’
   Batsmen had been allowed runners in the past for cramps, but the England skipper said it was something for the International Cricket Council to look at.
   ‘I didn’t feel he was cramping that badly either. He was still able to run. That was my view,’ said Strauss.
   Just a few days ago, the England captain was praised for his sporting gesture of recalling Sri Lankan batsman Angelo Mathews after he was run out following a collision with his fast bowler Graham Onions.
   ‘You just go with each situation as it comes,’ said South African-born Strauss.
   ‘I think the umpires were very uncomfortable with it as well. My personal view is that you shouldn’t get a runner for cramps.’
   Smith, who did not last long after suffering from cramp as he fell in the 47h over, said there needed to be consistency in allowing runners.
   ‘I was cramping quite badly and I requested a runner. Andrew spoke with the umpires and turned it down. He felt that if you score a hundred, you’re going to be tired. From my perspective, it felt a touch inconsistent,’ said Smith.
   ‘Guys have got runners for cramp in the past, so there needs to be a degree of consistency. From our perspective, it was a crucial period of the game. I was on the field for 95 overs and just felt it was inconsistent, that’s all.’
   Opener Smith was the ninth man out at 274 and his team managed only 27 off the remaining overs to fall short of the target.
   ‘I’m not going to sit here and say that he should have done this or that. The decision rests with the umpires as well. From my perspective, it’s just about putting it behind me now,’ said Smith.
   ‘The thing I’ve learned from this game is that the world’s round. It’s going to come back somewhere in the game, at some period of time in his captaincy. It’ll be interesting to see how he handles it again.’

Hosts South Africa received a media hammering Monday after a shock early exit from the ICC Champions Trophy tournament.
   The Proteas fell by 22 runs Sunday to surprise packets England, their second loss in three Group B matches at the second most important national team one-day tournament after the World Cup.
   A bowling outfit led by speedster Dale Steyn that conceded 856 runs in three outings bore the brunt of the criticism as a team ranked number one in the world once again flopped in a major competition.
   ‘The home team lost this match with the ball through one of the poorer bowling displays produced by them in recent years,’ said the Johannesburg Star under the headline ‘England break SA hearts’.
   ‘It was good wicket for batting certainly, and winning the toss was important, but the kind of dross served up by the bowlers would have made it easy for the local B team, never mind international batsmen.’
   The Star did not spare the batsmen either apart from captain courageous Graeme Smith, whose career-best 141 kept the Proteas in with a chance until his departure triggered a closing-overs collapse.
   ‘Where England made judicious use of the short boundary on the eastern side of the ground, only once did a South African player manage to clear the rope in that area of the field.’
   Business Day said top teams are there to be shot at and very few underdogs can resist the temptation to come out swinging in the hope of landing a knockout punch early on.
   ‘That South Africa bowled poorly is not in dispute. What they need to address is why. Were they due a bad day anyway or was there a problem with preparation?
   ‘If they stumbled and lost their collective rhythm because they were distracted by the fearless England approach, there may be a problem because every team will play like that now.
   The Citizen said it has once again become abundantly clear the South Africa and showpiece tournaments do not mix despite a magnificent innings from Smith at SuperSport Park 40 kilometres north of Johannesburg.
   ‘As with the 2003 World Cup, the South African public will have to stomach the fact that they have to support the tournament without their favourite team now.
   ‘While the Proteas will continue wearing tags labelled ‘chokers’ around their necks, it must be said that this was not a mere choke on a bite of apple.
   ‘Instead, England strangled them like a hit man equipped with a wire after producing a splendid batting effort when Andrew Strauss won an admittedly vital toss.’
   England made 323-8 and South Africa 301-9 in their alloted 50 overs and the winners became the first qualifiers for the semi-finals of a tournament offering a two million dollar first prize.

Pakistan’s cricket chief said the country will bid to host the 2014 World Twenty20 championship and vowed to revive international cricket in the troubled nation, a paper reported Monday.
   Speaking to the English-language newspaper The News, in Johannesburg, Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt said he was battling to improve Pakistan’s reputation as foreign teams snub the country over security fears.
   ‘We will bid to host the 2014 Twenty20 event in Pakistan and hopefully by that time the conditions to host international events would be ideal in our country,’ he told the paper.
   Butt is in South Africa to attend meetings of the International Cricket Council and is also scheduled to meet officials from other countries.
   ‘These coming few days are very important for Pakistan cricket,’ he said.
   ‘I am planning to attend some crucial meetings with the other board counterparts in an effort to muster up their support for the revival of cricket in Pakistan.’
   Pakistan’s standing as an international cricket venue was already floundering when militants launched a gun and grenade attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore in March this year, plunging the sport into crisis here. The attacks, which left eight people dead and injured seven Sri Lankan players and their assistant coach, put paid to Pakistan’s chances of staging international cricket in the near future.
   Even before the attack teams had refused to tour Pakistan over security fears in a country where the army is fighting a fierce Taliban insurgency.
   Citing security risks, the ICC in February relocated the Champions Trophy from Pakistan to South Africa, where it is currently being played. Pakistan was also stripped of its share of 2011 World Cup matches.
   Butt said he hoped for a return of the Indo-Pak cricket series, which was put on hold after militant attacks on Mumbai in November last year which India blamed on insurgents based in Pakistan.
   ‘The ICC... have also accepted that the series could be organised at neutral venues till the time the situation improves in Pakistan,’ he said.
   The ICC is scheduled to finalise the Future Tour Programme in its meeting starting on October 1 in South Africa. The programme aims at providing member countries a full schedule of cricket series post 2012.

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori has a Champions Trophy semi-finals place in his sights after victory over Sri Lanka Sunday in a Wanderers run-feast.
   Put in to bat, the Black Caps overcame a mid-innings crash to post 315-7 off 50 overs, the second highest total of the tournament after Sri Lanka scored four runs more in defeating South Africa on the opening day.
   A defiant 77 from Mahela Jayawardene gave Sri Lanka hope of an unlikely win, but they fell 38 runs short after being all out for 277 with 20 balls left of a Group B match staged in stifling heat.
   ‘Our fate is in our hands and we know the Wanderers wicket where the game against England will be played,’ said Vettori ahead of the tonight’s day-night clash that will determine the final mini-league standings.
   A win for the Kiwis and they are guaranteed a place in the semi-finals of the second most important one-day national team competition after the quadrennial World Cup.
   Depressed after a five-wicket loss to South Africa in their opening match at SuperSport Park in Centurion continued a run of poor batting performances, Vettori hopes his team have turned the corner.
   ‘We have been inconsistent with the bat, especially in Sri Lanka recently, and without good partnerships a team cannnot hope to win a tournament like the Champions Trophy.’
   Vettori could also do with a change of luck as Jesse Ryder, 74-run hero of the win over Sri Lanka, has joined bowler Jacob Oram in quitting the tournament through injury.
   Ryder, who scored 10 fours and one six with the aid of a runner in his 58-ball stand at the crease, struggled with a hamstring injury and was ruled out.
   He also had to attend a disciplinary hearing for breaking a chair with his bat as he returned to the pavilion after being caught by Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara off the bowling of Nuwan Kulasekara.
   Sangakkara was furious with the fielding of his team who were suffering their second consecutive loss after surprising South Africa in the opening match of the two-week tournament.
   ‘The standard of our fielding has to improve if we are going to challenge for titles like the Champions Trophy. For many months now we have been really shoddy in this area.
   ‘We were in the hunt for a long time against New Zealand but, unfortunately, the one big innings that could have swung the match our way never came and now we are relying on England defeating New Zealand to survive.
   ‘While I take heart from some great individual performances during our three matches, there is no doubt that as a team we let ourselves down,’ admitted Sangakkara.

JP Duminy may have only just embarked on his international career, but he is already coming to terms with South Africa’s lamentable record in ICC tournaments. Writing for the Independent Online, Duminy noted the ‘huge disappointment’ of South Africa’s first-round exit from the Champions Trophy, which came just three months after their failure to reach the final of the World Twenty20 tournament.
   ‘The disappointment levels are huge, especially coming so close on the back of the T20 World Championship exit,’ Duminy wrote. ‘I took that defeat very personally, but this one has really hit as a team. After all the hype of coming into the Champions Trophy as the No 1 team in the world, and then to end last in our group is hugely disappointing. We know we have let a lot of people down. The tournament is in our backyard and we really wanted to give the people of South Africa something to celebrate.
   ‘In the end, it was not to be. We’ve got no excuses because as a team we knew what we had to do. At the halfway stage, as a team, we believed we could chase down a record score at Centurion.
   We’ve done it in Test matches in Perth and Edgbaston and also in ODI cricket in Sydney over the last year.
   ‘All we can do is learn from these demoralising defeats and hope when the next time comes around we can implement our skills under pressure.’

Injured New Zealand batting hero Jesse Ryder was ruled out of the Champions Trophy and fined for smashing a chair as a triumph over Sri Lanka Sunday turned sour.
   Ryder scored 74 in a 38-run victory while struggling with a pulled hamstring and a team spokesman said he would play no further role for the Black Caps, who have already lost bowler Jacob Oram to injury.
   An International Cricket Council statement said the opening batsman, whose runs contributed to a total of 315-7 off 50 overs, struck a chair with his bat and broke it when walking to the pavilion.
   Ryder will be fined 15 percent of his match fee for breaching the ICC code of conduct after apologising for his behaviour soon after the match at the Wanderers ended.
   New Zealand complete their Group B schedule Tuesday against England at the same venue and will be guaranteed a place in the knockout phase of the four-million-dollar competition if they win.

Sri Lanka were fined Sunday for a slow over rate during a 38-run defeat by New Zealand in a Champions Trophy match at the Wanderers.
   Captain Kumar Sangakkara was fined 20 per cent of his match fee and the rest of the team 10 per cent each after falling two overs short of the target set for the Group B fixture.
   It was the second disciplinary action following the game with top New Zealand scorer Jesse Ryder fined 15 per cent of his match fee for smashing a chair with his bat after being dismissed.

Five-time European champions Liverpool bid to take command of Champions League Group E with a win in Fiorentina today despite having laboured to a 1-0 over Debrecen of Hungary at Anfield in their opening match.
   Rafael Benitez’s side travel to Florence on a high thanks to Saturday’s 6-1 crushing of Hull.
   With a tough Premier League match coming up against Chelsea next weekend, the Reds are determined to keep their current momentum going, says Fernando Torres, hat-trick hero against Hull.
   ‘As a team we are now in a good moment,’ the Spaniard, who helped to see off Inter Milan two seasons ago in his club’s last visit to Italy, told liverpoolfc.tv.
   ‘We are still not at our best – but we will be soon,’ he promised fans who, while they would be delighted if Benitez could deliver another continental title after the 2005 miracle of Istanbul saw them come back from the dead against AC Milan, are also demanding a first league title since 1990.
   While Torres fires up Liverpool, Fiorentina, currently fourth in Serie A two points behind pace-setters Sampdoria, have an even more combustible talent driving them forward in the shape of Romanian maverick Adrian Mutu.
   Mutu’s Premier League stint ended in well-documented ignomony when, playing for Chelsea, he tested positive in 2004 for cocaine use and was promptly sacked.
   After hauling himself back into the limelight at Juventus, following a seven-month ban, Mutu, now 30, moved on to Fiorentina.
   Mutu has dovetailed well with Alberto Gilardino – but the latter is suspended for today’s encounter, heaping added responsibility on Mutu’s shoulders as the Italians look to bounce back from a first round loss at French side Lyon.
   Fiorentina last played in the competition in 2000 while their last meeting with English opposition saw them defeat Liverpool’s city rivals Everton on penalties in the UEFA Cup two seasons ago.
   La Viola coach Cesare Prandelli will trust that his substitute appearance for Juventus in their 1985 final win over Liverpool will constitute a positive omen.
   Arsenal, like Liverpool, will similarly chase down a second win in Group H after Arsene Wenger’s men clawed their way out of jail from being 2-0 down in their opener at Standard Liege.
   Now the Gunners meet fellow first-day winners Olympiakos of Greece, coached this term by Brazilian legend Zico and for whom former Blackburn striker Matt Derbyshire will be hoping to shine after an injury-plagued start to the season.
   Derbyshire scored twice in last season’s Greek Cup final cliffhanger win over AEK Athens but has been carrying an injury across the summer. Arsenal, beaten in the semis by Manchester United last time out, can come of age this season as their young players mature, says Dutch flyer Robin van Persie, who foresees the end of a four-year barren trophy spell.
   The Gunners should easily get out of a group also containing his compatriots Alkmaar, who now host Liege, yet in previous years Arsenal’s youthful side has been found out in the latter stages.
   However, Van Persie says there are no ego clashes at the club and told Arsenal magazine that ‘we cannot hide behind saying we are inexperienced anymore. It is now about how much we really want it.’
   Holders Barcelona, having negotiated a draw at Inter Milan, should emerge confidently from Group F and will go top assuming they see off Dynamo Kyiv at the Nou Camp although Thierry Henry is a doubt with a groin strain.
   Inter travel into the unknown to face Russian champions Kazan, who lost their first ever Champions League game in Ukraine.
   In Group G, Rangers can follow up on their enterprising draw in Stuttgart by seeing off tricky Spaniards Sevilla in Glasgow on an evening where the Germans, managed by former Liverpool man Markus Babbel, will have to negotiate a potentially hazardous trip to Romania’s Unirea Urziceni.
   Despite holding Stuttgart, Rangers have suffered a domestic dip in form with Saturday’s stalemate against Aberdeen their third straight goalless league outcome.

Robin van Persie has warned Arsenal not to underestimate Olympiakos in today’s Champions League clash at the Emirates Stadium.
   Arsene Wenger’s team are favourites to qualify from Group H as the section’s winners after being drawn with Olympiakos, Standard Liege and AZ Alkmaar.
   But the Gunners almost slipped up in their first match as Liege raced into a two-goal lead against the Premier League club within five minutes in Belgium.
   Arsenal eventually fought back to claim a 3-2 win but van Persie believes another careless display against Olympiakos could prove costly.
   The 26-year-old, who scored the winner at Fulham on Saturday, knows Arsenal’s young squad are capable of emulating, or even improving on, last season’s semi-final appearance as long as they don’t take opponents for granted.
   ‘It is a good draw for us name wise, but as a player you need to produce in every single game because our opponents look at it from a different point of view,’ Van Persie told Arsenal’s magazine.
   ‘They will give all they have against us. We need to be ready for that.
   ‘I think we are, because we all know how football works when you do not give 100 percent - any team can beat you, even a Blue Square League team.
   ‘When you do not do everything, you are gone. We will do that in this group and have a good chance of going through.’
   Van Persie was Arsenal’s leading scorer last season with 20 goals from 44 appearances, but even the Dutch forward’s efforts couldn’t stop the Gunners finishing without silverware for a fourth successive season.
   The trophy drought has convinced some that Arsenal’s best days are behind them, but van Persie is determined to help Wenger take the club back to the top in England and Europe.
   ‘I want to give what I hope are my best years to Arsenal, because I love the club and want to succeed here,’ Van Persie said.
   ‘And it is not just about winning trophies - I can say that in the last five years I have won lots of trophies myself as a human, if you see what I mean, as well as footballing achievements.
   ‘The steps I have made from day one to now are, I think, big. I am really just thankful for the chance to have done that - thankful to the fans, the boss, the players, to everyone who has a warm heart for Arsenal.
   ‘So it is not simply about trophies, it is the whole story of Arsenal giving me lots of positive things.
   ‘Of course the end result is trophies and I want that - but I am not closing my mind to what is happening day in and day out at this club.’
   While Arsenal’s squad is undoubtedly one of the younger in the Champions League, van Persie doesn’t believe age is an excuse for failing to deliver on their potential.
   Instead he draws strength from the way players from so many differing backgrounds have bonded together because of their time together in the club’s youth academy.
   ‘I do feel our team spirit is at a higher level than most other clubs. Other clubs have lots of egos. We have egos here but the whole squad has good egos and good characters. That is not the case at many other clubs,’ he added.
   ‘We now have more experience too. There is me, Clichy, Fabregas and Song - we cannot hide behind saying we are inexperienced anymore. It is now about how much we really want it.’

Villarreal coach Ernesto Valverde came under more pressure on Sunday as his side slumped to a 1-0 defeat at Deportivo La Coruna to leave them languishing second from bottom of the table.
   Deportivo’s Brazilian midfielder Juca, a summer signing from Partizan Belgrade, scored a free-kick after eight minutes to decide the match although Villarreal spurned a number of chances to equalise. Valverde arrived as Manuel Pellegrini’s successor in the summer having won a league and cup double with Greek giants Olympiakos but has yet to taste his first win in charge and the pressure is mounting.
   ‘We had a problem getting into the match but Deportivo only had one clear chance in the first half apart from their goal,’ said Valverde.
   ‘In the second half we dominated but just couldn’t score.’
   Villarreal’s next match is against Valverde’s old club Espanyol who he guided to the 2007 UEFA Cup final where they lost on penalties to Sevilla. Deportivo, meanwhile climb to fifth with their latest victory, a point behind fourth-placed Mallorca who continued their superb start with a 3-0 home win over Valladolid to climb up to fourth.
   Mallorca were the third best team in the second half of last season - only Barcelona and Real Madrid collected more points - and they appear to have continued where they left off.
   ‘Our target is to have a relaxed season,’ explained Mallorca coach Gregorio Manzano, whose side have won their three home games without conceding a goal.
   ‘We are delighted to keep clean sheets at home and we have only let in three goals in five games which is a great start.’ Portuguese defender Jose Nunes scored after three minutes before Aritz Aduriz grabbed a second close to the hour mark and Borja Valero notched a third shortly after.
   In Sunday’s other matches, it was a historic day for Xerez who recorded their first ever point in the Spanish top flight with a 0-0 draw at Espanyol. Xerez fans have waited 62 years for their side to grace the top division and had started with four defeats since winning promotion as second division champions.
   However, they stay bottom and have yet to score their first goal in the top tier.
   ‘A draw was a fair result and this point is great for our morale,’ said Xerez coach Jose Ziganda. ‘There are still eight and a half months left in the season for us to move forward.’
   Osasuna, who beat relegation on the final day of last season, climbed into mid-table with a 1-0 win over Sporting Gijon in Pamplona.
   Iranian international Javad Nekanoum converted from the penalty spot after 55 minutes to clinch the spoils for Osasuna.
   Promoted Real Zaragoza are also going well with a 3-0 win over Getafe on Sunday lifting them to a creditable eighth in the standings.

Bologna’s veteran Brazilian forward Adailton scored an equaliser deep into injury time to deny Juventus a return to the top of the Serie A table following a 1-1 draw in Turin.
   The result left Juventus one point behind leaders Sampdoria, who beat champions Inter Milan 1-0 on Saturday.
   Meanwhile, AC Milan’s miserable start to the season continued as they needed goalkeeper Marco Storari to rescue a 0-0 draw for them at home to newly-promoted Bari.
   They were booed off the San Siro pitch as they slumped to seven points behind Sampdoria after just two wins in six matches and just a solitary goal in their last five encounters.
   Under-pressure Milan coach Leonardo said his side deserved their jeers.
   ‘Bari played very, very well while we struggled a lot,’ he said. ‘At the end of the game jeers, just like applause, are always deserved.’
   Just as had been the case in their 0-0 draw at Livorno, Milan had Storari to thank for coming away with a point.
   He made a string of fine saves denying Leonardo Bonucci, Honduran winger Edgar Alvarez, Emmanuel Rivas and Riccardo Meggiorini.
   Argentine winger Rivas caused Milan problems and after one mazy run that saw him beat three defenders, including a nutmeg on Alessandro Nesta, he deserved a better finish than hurridly snatching at his shot and blazing over the bar.
   Milan, who were largely dominated, had some good chances of their own but the best fell to the recalled Ronaldinho, whose effort looked headed for the top corner until Belgian goalkeeper Jean Francois Gillet intervened.
   In Turin, France forward David Trezeguet came close to a first-half hat-trick before Bologna laid siege to the Juventus goal after the break to snatch a dramatic late share of the spoils.
   Juventus coach Ciro Ferrara was furious with his team.
   ‘(The goal) wasn’t Bologna’s only chance, we were naive and we took too much time to get into position at the back,’ he said.
   ‘On their goal no-one was there, we gave away too much. I brought in players who hadn’t played for a while and maybe we had a problem gelling.
   ‘We need to manage the ball better when we have it and be less frenetic. We need to be more balanced.’
   Trezeguet came close with a right-foot volley that Emiliano Viviano tipped around the post before he tapped in on 24 minutes after Jonathan Zebina’s shot came back off Viviano and a defender.
   The former Monaco man flashed a left foot finish just past the upright before Andrea Raggi had the ball in the net for Bologna in first half stoppage time only to be chalked off for offside.
   If Juve had looked comfortable before the break, they were anything but after it with former striker Marco Di Vaio terrorising their back-line.
   He escaped to bear down one-on-one against Gianluigi Buffon but put the ball wide and moments later got free again, rounded the Italy stopper only to see Giorgi Chiellini get back to clear his shot off the line.
   Buffon then came to the rescue to keep out a Giacomo Tedesco shot at full stretch before Adailton thrashed the rebound over the bar.
   But three minutes into stoppage time Tedesco sent a long, high cross into the box and Adailton arrived at the back post to stab a volley into the ground that bounced up and beyond Buffon’s despairing dive.
   Italy midfielder Daniele De Rossi salvaged AS Roma coach Claudio Ranieri’s unbeaten league start in charge of the giallorosso as his injury-time strike earned a 1-1 draw at Catania following Japan forward Takayuki Morimoto’s opener.
   Slovakian midfielder Marek Hamsik eased the pressure on former Italy coach Roberto Donadoni as his brace gave Napoli a 2-1 home win over Siena.
   In other games, Serie A top scorer Antonio Di Natale continued his hot streak, netting in Udinese’s 2-0 win over Genoa while Atalanta climbed off the bottom of the table with a 1-1 draw at Chievo.

Arsenal on Monday announced a record profit after tax of 35.2 million pounds (38.2 million euros) from results for the financial year ending May 31.
   The turnover of the Gunners’ parent holding company, which also has substantial property interests at the Highbury Square development of their former stadium, went up to 313.3 million pounds (339 million euros) from 223 million pounds (242 million euros) for the same period last year.
   Arsenal’s move to the Emirates Stadium in 2006 - funded by a long-term loan at a fixed interest rate - continues to pay dividends, with matchday revenue increased to 100.1 million pounds (108 million euros) from 94.6 million pounds (102 million euros) which was mainly down to progress to the semi-finals of both the Champions League and FA Cup.
   Operating profits, before depreciation and player trading, in the football business were up from 59.6 million pounds (64.7 million euros) to 62.7 million pounds (68.1 million euros).
   The Highbury Square development, meanwhile, remains robust despite the difficult financial climate and falling house prices, with the completion of 208 private apartments bringing in 88 million pounds (95.6 million euros), while, since the end of the financial year, more units have been sold at the club’s former ground.
   Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood knows all too well the importance of consistency on the pitch, which ultimately drives all other parts of the business.
   ‘The group’s profits have now risen in each of the three years in which Emirates Stadium has been our home. This is excellent news, although I should perhaps stress that making and reporting profits is not in itself the primary objective for the directors,’ Hill-Wood said in his report.
   ‘First and foremost we are supporters of this great football club and, as such, our main goal will always be the achievement of success for Arsenal on the field.
   ‘The group’s profitability is important because it is a by-product of running the club as a solvent and successful business, which in turn allows us to maximise the level of investment in the playing staff and in the future development of the club.’

Chelsea captain John Terry accused his team-mates of giving up without a fight after Wigan handed the Blues their first defeat this season.
   Carlo Ancelotti’s side had won all eight of their matches in all competitions until last weekend, but were out-fought by Wigan as the Latics claimed a shock 3-1 victory at the DW Stadium on Saturday.
   The win was Wigan’s first against one of the ‘big four’ in 35 attempts and Terry was furious with Chelsea’s lack of spirit.
   ‘The least we expect from every player is that we work hard and fight and we did not do that,’ he said in The Sun.
   ‘We didn’t win our headers and we didn’t win our tackles and that’s simply not good enough.
   ‘You can go anywhere and not play well. But when you come to places like this, you’ve got to match their work-rate.
   ‘We didn’t do that, the whole team. That’s the most disappointing thing.
   ‘All the other big sides had emphatic wins, so it’s even more disappointing we’ve thrown away three points.’
   Even Didier Drogba, who had started the season in superb form, was subdued on Saturday and the Ivory Coast striker described the performance as the worst of his five-year Blues career.
   Drogba told the Evening Standard: ‘We didn’t play very well. We lost all the battles, all the duels. We didn’t win anything. We were poor.
   ‘This is the worst game I have played in since I have been at Chelsea. We need to think about it, correct what was wrong and try to go again.
   ‘We equalised just after half-time and we were trying to improve our game, but then there was the penalty and a red card (for Petr Cech), which I think was a bit harsh.’

Rafael Benitez insists Fernando Torres is not for sale at any price after the Liverpool manager revealed he received offers from Premier League clubs for the Spain striker during the close-season.
   Torres underlined his value to Liverpool as he took his goal tally for the season to eight in seven games with a hat-trick in Saturday’s 6-1 win over Hull at Anfield.
   The former Atletico Madrid star has established himself as one of the best forwards in Europe since joining Liverpool in 2007 and it is believed Manchester City and Chelsea both enquired about buying him before the start of the season.
   But Benitez has warned any potential suitors they would be wasting their time trying to prise Torres away from Anfield.
   ‘How much is he worth? ‘Well at least 70 million pounds (75 million euros), you would say,’ Benitez said.
   ‘I’m not saying he’s the best in the world because he is young and can get better, but of course he is one of the best, and he can still improve if he wants to.
   ‘This year we had some agents acting for other English clubs who were coming to us asking about the price of Torres, with big, big figures, but we said that he’s not for sale.
   ‘I would say at this moment in time he is not for sale at any price.’

Barce-lona have a perfect five wins in the league but are yet to register their first victory in the Champions League going into today’s Group F match against Dinamo Kiev at Camp Nou.
   Barcelona warmed up for the match with a 2-0 win over Malaga to maintain their 100-percent start on the domestic front and the Champions League holders aim to kick-start their European campaign with three points against Kiev.
   ‘We now have to recover for the Champions League game against Kiev,’ said Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola. ‘We know they are a team that puts pressure on you and is very physical and well organised.’
   Barcelona drew 0-0 with Inter Milan in their group opener while Kiev lead the group on three points after beating minnows Rubin Kazan 3-1.
   Swede Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been a revelation for Barcelona scoring in all five of their league matches and now he will aim to net his first Champions League goal in Spanish colours.
   With his 6ft 5in (1.95m) frame Ibrahimovic is a real aerial threat and he has provided Barcelona with an alternative plan to their slick passing game although the tall striker is also adept at receiving the ball to his feet.
   Ibrahimovic came on as a substitute against Malaga to open the scoring despite being a doubt for the game with a twisted ankle.
   ‘Ibrahimovic gives us a bit more of an aerial threat and we appreciate the effort he put in when he wasn’t 100 per cent,’ said Guardiola.
   Dani Alves also lauded the contribution of the 69 million euro signing from Inter Milan, declaring: ‘He is a key figure in this team and we can play a bit more direct if we need to. He can help us a lot with his goals and overall quality.’
   French striker Thierry Henry hobbled out of the Malaga win holding his groin leaving Ibrahimovic as the only fit out-and-out striker with Bojan Krkic also sidelined.
   Ukraine centre-back Dmitro Chygrynskiy was another injury setback for the defending champions facing a three week lay-off with knee ligament injury although he would have been cup-tied for the Kiev match in any case.
   Barcelona actually lost their last Champions League match against Ukrainian opposition going down 3-2 at Camp Nou against Shakhtar Donetsk in last season’s group stage although Guardiola fielded a number of youngsters having already secured qualification.
   Barcelona are likely to field a strong side against Kiev and Guardiola may inject some fresh legs with Spanish international midfielder Andres Iniesta and Mexican defender Rafael Marquez rested at the weekend.
   Kiev are seasoned campaigners in the Champions League and have arguably Ukraine’s most successful export on their books in Andriy Shevchenko
   Shevchenko, now 32, is back at the club where he made his name before going on to huge success with AC Milan where he scored the decisive penalty in the 2003 Champions League final shoot-out win over Juventus.

Barcelona coach Josep Guardiola raised many an eyebrow in July when he decided to throw out Samuel Eto’o, the club’s top scorer for the previous five seasons. Eto’o had just scored 35 goals while helping Barca to win an unprecedented ‘treble’ of league, cup and Champions League. Even so, Guardiola said, rather enigmatically, that he had to leave because of a ‘lack of feeling.’
   Even more eyebrows were raised when Guardiola insisted that Barca swap Eto’o for Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic - plus almost 50 million euros (73.47 million dollars).
   The ‘vox populi’ in Barcelona was that Ibrahimovic would add even more elegance and artistry to Barca and score some handsome goals - but not as many as Eto’o.
   Just two months later, however, the deal is looking surprisingly good from a Barca perspective.
   Eto’o, who had refused to extend his Barca contact (which was due to expire in 2010), has struggled to fit in and score goals in Italy.
   Ibrahimovic, in contrast, has looked sharp, fast and keen - and has scored in all five of Barca’s Spanish league games.
   Never before - not even with Johan Cruyff in 1973, Diego Maradona in 1982 or Ronaldo in 1996 - has a new Barca signing made such an immediate impact at the club.
   Catalan television channel TV-3 commented on Sunday that ‘no one really expected Ibrahimovic to settle in so quickly...Practically nobody is missing Eto’o at all now.’
   Catalan daily Sport, for its part, claimed on Sunday that most Barca fans expected that Ibrahimovic would need ‘a couple of months to settle in,’ especially as he arrived with a broken left hand and could not play in friendlies until the end of August.
   The tall Swedish striker, who will be 28 next week, has already become a new Barca idol and has been nicknamed ‘Ibracadabra’ by the local media.
   The latest example of his magic came on Saturday, away to Malaga.
   Guardiola had been planning to give Ibrahimovic a well-earned rest and so left him on the subs’ bench. After half an hour, however, Thierry Henry limped off with a thigh strain.
   On came ‘Ibra’ and within 10 minutes he had scored the first goal, after taking a clever pass from Xavi. Now the elegant Swede is keen to score his first goals for Barca in the Champions League, at home to Dynamo Kiev today.
   ‘I am pleased that I came here,’ he said last week, in his curious mix of English and Italian. ‘Now I want to help Barca to continue being a successful team.’
   Winning the Champions League is one of Ibrahimovic’s priorities.
   He won three Italian league titles with Inter but was clearly frustrated by the club’s lack of European success, which was in fact one of his reasons for swapping san Siro for the Camp Nou.

Liverpool co-owner George Gillett is set to sell his stake in the Premier League club to Saudi Arabian sports investment vehicle F6, according to the company’s managing director Gassim Hamidaddin.
   Gillett and fellow American owner Tom Hicks have endured a troubled relationship since buying Liverpool in 2007 and with the club apparently struggling to raise finances the former is ready to sell at least a portion of his stake.
   F6 official Hamidaddin told Reuters: ‘We have not reached a final agreement yet ... We are discussing how much 25 per cent or 50 per cent in Liverpool will be worth.’
   Saudi prince Faisal bin Fahad bin Abdullah al-Saud, who chairs F6, was at Anfield to watch Liverpool’s 6-1 thrashing of Hull City on Saturday, and said after the match that he was ‘close’ to buying a stake in the Reds. Prince Faisal said the deal could ‘be worth £200 million to £350 million’ but Hamidaddin said these figures ‘were not 100 per cent accurate’. Regardless of the final amount, if the deal goes through it would provide a huge cash boost for Liverpool. Lack of funds means plans to build a new stadium in Stanley Park have been shelved and manager Rafael Benitez has reportedly fallen out with the board over his transfer budget on more than one occasion.
   Liverpool have sought to expand their brand in the Middle East with a series of academies and the George Gillett Group are said to have agreed a memorandum of understanding with F6 that included an option to invest in the club.
   Hamidaddin said: ‘There was a clause in this agreement that opened the possibility of buying a stake in Liverpool.’

Ben Foster has revealed the debt of gratitude he owes to Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
   There was widespread speculation that Foster would be dropped for Saturday’s Premier League win at Stoke.
   Foster was certainly to blame for Manchester City’s first goal in the derby encounter last weekend, while questions were also asked about his dismal efforts to prevent Craig Bellamy scoring the Blues’ third equaliser.
   Yet at the first available opportunity, Ferguson insisted he was sticking with the 26-year-old and was rewarded with a clean sheet as United defeated Stoke 2-0 at the Britannia Stadium to go top for the first time this season.
   ‘I have to say a big thanks to the boss for sticking by me,’ said Foster. ‘Last Sunday was great for the team but personally, it was an absolute disaster.
   ‘I was gutted afterwards. I was the only one in the changing room with an upside down smile on his face.’
   The torment continued long into the week as professional and amateur analysts had their say.
   Foster could have driven himself mad by pouring over every damning word. Instead, he chose to ignore it all.
   ‘I pretty much buried my head in the sand,’ he said. ‘I didn’t really want to watch the television and there was no way I was reading the papers the next day.’
   Not that Foster could escape scrutiny. But the assessments that mattered were kept within United’s Carrington training complex as goalkeeping coach Eric Steele delivered his withering verdict.
   ‘When we got into training I had to face up to it,’ he said. ‘I had to look at the replays, analyse them and learn from them.
   ‘The goalkeeping coach has been on at me all week and was really hard on me. But I needed that and I like to think I have learnt from it.
   ‘You are going to have those days as a goalkeeper sometimes and you have to keep them to a minimum.’
   As Foster acknowledges, mental fortitude is one of the major reasons why Edwin van der Sar has lasted so long at the top.
   Whereas Foster used to look at the battle for a first-team berth with the 39-year-old as purely an assessment of their relative abilities, now he realises it is much more.
   Van der Sar makes mistakes like everybody else. His big advantage is not being affected by them.
   ‘The more you play the more concentration and consistency you develop,’ he said.
   ‘Edwin is a typical example of Mr Cool. He is a fantastic professional and he is someone I want to emulate at Manchester United.
   ‘He is exactly what I am aiming to be for years to come.’

The early part of the Serie A season has seemed to confirm the poor quality of Italian football, particularly as the big guns who are playing the Champions League are concerned. As Juventus and title-holders Inter Milan have managed to keep close to the top, the worse off are by far AC Milan.
   The latest weekend game saw them hissed out of the pitch as newcomers Bari took home a scoreless draw and had themselves to blame for the many missed chances.
   ‘Hisses, like applause, are always deserved,’ commented Brazilian coach Leonardo, who took over in the summer after the highly successful Carlo Ancelotti moved on to Chelsea and star Kaka transferred to Real Madrid.
   The red-black Devils have very little in common with the team that, under Ancelotti, won their seventh Champions League in 2007, four years after notching their sixth.
   Curiously, however, Milan’s best outing this season was on the European stage, where they debuted in mid-September with a 2-1 win away to Olympique Marseille.
   On Wednesday, they look to keep going against guests Zurich while, in the home league, they have already suffered two defeats in six games and lag seven points from a top place where Sampdoria sit alone after beating Inter 1-0 at the weekend.
   ‘It’s hard for us to create chances for goal,’ a disconsolate Leonardo said as his side remained on a 3-6 goal difference. ‘The motivation to do well was there, but we didn’t manage to create.’
   Up front, Milan did very little as Andrea Pirlo seldom provided usable feeds for the indifferent newcomer Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and his striking mate Ronaldinho seemed to have forgotten how to leap past an opponent.
   In the end, the best on the pitch was goalkeeper Marco Storari, filling in for the injured Christian Abbiati, but always ready to parry Bari’s fearsome attempts.
   The southern Italy side did very well at the Giuseppe Meazza also in the season opener, drawing 1-1 with Inter.
   Coach Jose Mourinho has described his team as a work in progress after the departure of star Zlatan Ibrahimovic for Barcelona and the arrival of Samuel Eto’o and Diego Milito.
   As the works continue with a visit to Rubin Kazan, the Portuguese seems to have become more untreatable than usual, particularly after being suspended on September 20 for insulting a referee.
   After a week in hiding, he showed up Sunday only to refuse to answer most of the questions, maintaining in a crabby tone that he ‘owed no explanations to anyone’ about his substitutions.
   ‘I’m talking not because you asked me to do it, but because the club did. There are contracts to be honoured,’ he added, and declined to explain his attitude toward the media.
   Juve’s Ciro Ferrara, like Leonardo a former player of the team he coaches and a newcomer to the business, did have something to say in the form of excuses for the 1-1 home draw to Bologna.
   As his side gears up for a tough away game to Bayern Munich, Ferrara said the ‘maybe we don’t manage the ball well when we have it.’
   His acknowledgment sums up the troubles of his two other colleagues: it’s hard to play when too many players seem to have lost the concentration to play good football.
   It’s a flaw they could pay for dearly in Europe.

Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner will miss today’s Champions League tie against Olympiakos after he was involved in a car accident.
   Gunners boss Arsene Wenger, speaking at a press conference on Monday, revealed Denmark international Bendtner suffered a minor crash on Sunday.
   ‘Nicklas did not practise because he had a car accident on Sunday,’ Wenger said.
   ‘Fortunately there was no real long-term damage, but he was bruised and we thought it better he did not train. He should be back for Sunday’s game (against Blackburn).’
   Bendtner, 21, was driving along the A1 towards South Mimms when his car left the road.
   It is understood no other vehicle was involved in the incident and a Hertfordshire police spokesman said: ‘We were called at 10.15am to a report of a single vehicle road traffic collision.
   ‘A black Aston Martin vehicle had left the road. The driver was not seriously injured.’
   Wenger will also be without Brazilian midfielder Denilson, who faces up to two months on the sidelines with a fracture to his back.
   Goalkeeper Manuel Almunia is still troubled by the chest infection, so young Italian Vito Mannone will continue in his place.

Kaka has revealed that while he understands that there will be squad rotations at Real Madrid he does not like to be the one to be left out of the team.
   The Brazilian started the encounter against Tenerife on the bench as Esteban Granero lined up in midfield alongside Xabi Alonso and he admitted that he’s feeling frustrated.
   ‘I understand the rotations although it is obvious that I always want to play,’ he was quoted as saying by AS.
   After entering the game at half time, Kaka scored his first competitive goal from open play for the club since his move from AC Milan when he netted in the 3-0 win over Tenerife on Saturday, and he was delighted with his strike.
   ‘It was a very special day for me because I scored,’ he continued. ‘I want to dedicate that goal to my wife and children.’
   Barcelona and Madrid have both won their opening five league games of the season, but Kaka was not keen on making comparisons with his team’s arch rivals.
   ‘Barça? As Pellegrini has said, we do not have to compare ourselves with them,’ he added.
   ‘Madrid need time to gel and to start playing without thinking about it.’

Argen-tina have called up Bayern Munich defender Martin Demichelis for their final World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Uruguay next month in place of the injured Fabricio Coloccini.
   The Argentine Football Association said on its website (www.afa.org.ar) that Coloccini had been ruled out after he was injured playing for Newcastle United on Saturday.
   Demichelis, who missed this month’s defeats by Brazil and Paraguay, has not played since early August when he suffered an ankle injury in Germany.
   Argentina are fifth in the South American group and face the prospect of a playoff against the team finishing fourth in the CONCACAF region. South America’s top four qualify directly for the finals in South Africa next year.

Ryan Giggs’ ability to turn Saturday’s Stoke City tie in Manchester United’s favour further highlighted the sub-par performance of Portuguese winger Nani, but when the international is feeling low, he claims he can always find a confidence boost when he talks to international team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo.
   Nani arrived at the Theatre of Dreams in a similar style to Ronaldo, now at Real Madrid.
   They were purchased from the same club, Sporting CP, and employed a multitude of tricks and flicks in the initial stages of their Old Trafford days - but the former has not developed at the same rate as the latter.
   The 22-year-old winger, though, still seeks the approval of Ronaldo.
   ‘Cristiano and I talk a lot,’ Nani revealed to Sky Sports News. ‘We speak about my own game and he gives me confidence to go out and perform.’
   Ronaldo recently talked-up the talent and potential of Nani. He said: ‘Nani is an excellent player and I am sure that in a few years he will be among the best players in the world.’

Wayne Rooney, 23, is to take a course to earn UEFA coaching qualifications as he starts to plan for a career after his playing days end.
   The striker is joining Manchester United team-mates Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes and Edwin van der Sar on the course.
   Manager Sir Alex Ferguson has given the plan his blessing and will encourage the England goalscorer to broaden his knowledge of the game. ‘He’s football mad,’ said Ferguson.

Javier Mascherano and Yossi Benayoun will miss Liverpool’s Champions League clash against Fiorentina in Italy today.
   Argentina midfielder Mascherano, who came on as a late substitute in Saturday’s 6-1 defeat of Hull, is suffering from sickness, while Israel playmaker Benayoun picked up a leg injury in the same match.