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Fifa race: Figo and Van Praag withdraw

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Jordan’s Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein is now the only challenger to Sepp Blatter in the race for Fifa’s top job.

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Berne - Luis Figo and Michael van Praag pulled out of the Fifa presidential election race on Thursday, leaving Jordan's Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein as the only challenger to incumbent and runaway favourite Sepp Blatter.

Figo went out with a bang as he launched a blistering attack on the electoral system of soccer's governing body, saying it was a “plebiscite for the delivery of absolute power to one man - something I refuse to go along with”.

The former Portugal forward added: “Over the past few months I have not only witnessed that desire (for change), I have witnessed consecutive incidents, all over the world, that should shame anyone who desires soccer to be free, clean and democratic.

“I have seen with my own eyes federation presidents who, after one day comparing Fifa leaders to the devil, then go on stage and compare those same people with Jesus Christ. Nobody told me about this. I saw it with my own eyes.

“I am firm in my desire to take an active part in the regeneration of Fifa and I will be available for it whenever it is proven to me that we are not living under a dictatorship.”

Blatter, 79, is widely to expected to be re-elected for a fifth term on May 29, even though, under his watch, Fifa has been plagued by a wave of scandals and controversy.

These have ranged from allegations of corruption in the 2018/2022 World Cup bidding process to a row over $25 000 watches gifted to executive committee members at the World Cup in Brazil last year.

Uefa, with 53 of the 209 votes at the election, have said they will not back Blatter, but the Swiss has widespread promises of support from the rest of the world.

Dutch FA president Van Praag pledged to back Prince Ali and, in a joint press conference in Amsterdam, said that the only way to unseat Blatter was for his opponents to unite.

Van Praag said Prince Ali had agreed to back his human rights and governance commitments, including ensuring better protections for migrant workers in 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar.

“He is the one candidate who has the biggest chance to challenge Sepp Blatter,” Van Praag said.

“If the football family follows their desires, and if things are done in a correct way with no interference, we have a great chance of making that change,” Prince Ali said.

Figo complained that Blatter's rivals were prevented from speaking at the Congresses of the continental confederations, apart from Uefa, and that Blatter had failed to present a manifesto or engage with his opponents.

“After a personal reflection and sharing views with two other candidates in this process, I believe that what is going to happen on May 29 in Zurich is not a normal electoral act. And because it is not, don't count on me.”

“There has not been a single public debate about each candidate's proposals,” said the 42-year-old Figo, Portugal's most capped player with 127 appearances.

“Does anyone think it's normal that an election for one of the most relevant organisations on the planet can go ahead without a public debate?

“Does anyone think it's normal that one of the candidates doesn't even bother to present an election manifesto that can be voted on May 29.”

Figo said he had received an “incredible wave of support from soccer players, former players, coaches, referees and administrators”.

But he concluded: “I do not fear the ballot box, but I will not go along with nor will I give my consent to a process which will end on May 29 and from which soccer will not emerge the winner.”

Blatter has been in power since 1998 and gone back an a pledge that his current mandate would be his last.

Prince Ali, a member of Fifa's executive committee, is regarded as a progressive candidate.

He was instrumental in persuading soccer's rule-making body to allow Islamic women footballers to wear the hijab, or headscarf, when they play.

Reuters

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Xavi confirms Barca exit

Barcelona midfielder and captain Xavi confirmed he will leave the club at the end of the season and has agreed to join Qatari side Al Sadd.

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Barcelona - Barcelona midfielder and captain Xavi confirmed he will leave the club at the end of the season and has agreed to join Qatari side Al Sadd.

Xavi, 35, who signed up with Barca's academy in 1991 at the age of 11 and has won 23 trophies during 17 seasons in the first team, made the announcement at a news conference.

“It's a definitive decision, it's not an easy one, it's the right moment to go,” Xavi, Barcelona's appearance record holder, told reporters.

“I still feel useful here but a change of scene is necessary, my head tells me so but not my heart,” he said, adding that his aim was to return to Barca after completing his coaching qualifications.

Xavi will receive an emotional send-off in Barcelona's final La Liga game of the campaign at home to Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday, when he will hoist aloft the La Liga trophy after the match.

Last weekend Barca wrapped up the title, Xavi's eighth, and he can win two more trophies in the King's Cup final against Athletic Bilbao on May 30 and the Champions League showpiece versus Juventus a week later. – Reuters

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Sterling won’t sign new deal - agent

Raheem Sterling's agent says the England winger will not sign a new deal at Anfield - even for £900 000 a week.

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London - Raheem Sterling's agent has fuelled the fire surrounding the player's contract standoff with Liverpool by saying the England winger would not sign a new deal at Anfield - even for 900,000 pounds ($1.41 million) a week.

The 20-year-old has developed a reputation as one of England's brightest young prospects, but has been at the centre of media frenzy in recent months surrounding his contract negotiations.

The player and his agent, Aidy Ward, are set for a showdown with Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers and chief executive Ian Ayre on Friday when Sterling is expected to tell the club he wants to leave.

“He is definitely not signing,” Ward told the Evening Standard.

“He's not signing for 700, 800, 900 thousand pounds a week. He is not signing.”

Sterling, who was given his Premier League break by Liverpool and shone as they launched an unexpected title challenge last season, has come in for criticism from many former Anfield greats.

The player's relationship with the club and fans has also deteriorated since he gave an unauthorised interview to the BBC when he denied being a “money-grabber” and claimed he was motivated purely by ambition.

The interview was widely interpreted as a PR disaster and prompted many pundits to round on Ward for mishandling a delicate situation and giving poor advice to his client.

Ward has hit back, however, aiming a personal insult at former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher, before dismissing the media backlash as little more than background noise.

“My job is to make sure I do the best with them (my clients). If people say I am bad at my job, or they are badly advised it does not matter,” he said.

“Any of the criticism from current pundits or ex-Liverpool players - none of them things matter to me. It is not relevant.”

Liverpool boss Rodgers has publicly denied the club would countenance selling Sterling but, with only two years remaining on his contract, a bid of around 50 million pounds would test their resolve.

Media reports have suggested Liverpool's rivals Manchester United have already approached them - and have been rebuffed - while Manchester City, Chelsea and Bayern Munich have also been linked with a move.

Ward, who is also the agent of Saido Berahino, another player who has been publicly angling for a move, claimed there would not be a lack of suitors for Sterling.

“I am not worried,” he added. “Worried is making a decision not knowing what is going to happen. Every Premier League club will make a bid for him.” – Reuters

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Blatter is champion manipulator

Unless the world of soccer shifts on its axis, Sepp Blatter will be re-elected as Fifa president for a fifth term.

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London - Unless the world of soccer shifts on its axis at the end of this month, Sepp Blatter will be re-elected as Fifa president for a fifth term at the annual congress of world soccer's governing body in Zurich.

It is almost inconceivable that any of the 79-year-old's three challengers, Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan of Fifa's executive committee or former World Footballer of the Year Luis Figo will unseat him.

Five of Fifa's six continental confederations publicly expressed their support for Blatter before the World Cup in Brazil last year, with Uefa declaring its opposition, meaning the vast majority of Fifa's 209 members will vote for him.

But even Uefa president Michel Platini decided to stay in his current role and not stand against the Swiss incumbent knowing he had no real chance of beating him.

That realistically removed any doubt that Blatter's 17-year reign would be extended until at least 2019 when he will be 83.

So how has soccer, the world's most popular sport, reached a position where one old man is so powerful he is not voted out of office?

How can he stay, the sceptics ask, despite almost endless controversies and allegations of bribery and corruption pointed at Fifa for most of the last two decades?

The latest serious allegations were that the voting process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, awarded to Russia and Qatar, was corrupt.

The findings of the inquiry into those claims, led by American lawyer Michael Garcia, have been buried in the Fifa vaults and are never likely to be publicly revealed.

A new book, “The Ugly Game”, highlights claims of “How Qatar bought the World Cup” and Blatter's role in it.

But like every allegation thrown at him since he first became president in 1998, Blatter has emerged unscathed and will almost certainly be voted back into office on May 29.

Football Pope

Michel D'Hooge, 68, the honorary president of the Belgian FA and a Fifa executive committee member since 1988, has no doubts about why Blatter cannot be toppled.

“He is powerful, he is untouchable, he is, I would say, the Pope of Football,” D'Hooge told Reuters in an interview in August.

“He cannot be summed up in only one phrase but if I had to answer with one word it would be: intelligence. He is an incredibly intelligent man, he knows everything, and everybody and knows how everything works.

“He has enormous political nous. You could say, and there are those in Uefa that do, that if you are 79 and you are the boss of an organisation that has been seriously criticised, then you must take responsibility for the criticism.

“But, on the other hand, his life is Fifa, he may be 79 but he is incredibly mentally alert.”

D'Hooghe has had his differences with Blatter in the past, but he also sees the qualities of the man.

“He understands the cultures of different parts of the world that make up Fifa so it is no coincidence that most of the members would vote for him,” he said.

“Of course, you can say that they feel good because they receive a lot of money and grants from Fifa - that is his political behaviour.”

D'Hooghe also has a warning for the three challengers.

“No-one should stand against him because they know they have no chance. It is very simple, it would be suicide to stand against him, you cannot beat him.”

Others agree he cannot be beaten.

Master manipulator

One former executive committee member, who spoke to Reuters in Monte Carlo last August on condition of anonymity, agreed that Blatter has a certain omnipotence.

“He is the world champion of manipulation, a master. There is no-one like him, no-one.

“Look how he handled the Sunday Times story regarding corruption over the World Cup vote to Qatar. He immediately branded all Europeans “racist” because they said, 'Look at what is happening in Africa, in Asia”

“That is the kind of manipulation he does on a lot of things.

“So those kind of comments win him the support of those who feel attacked by what they regard as the European elite.”

The former executive member added: “But he also rules by what I call his extremely anti-democratic way of management because things are never brought to discussion.

“So the question is how can this go on? It goes on because he is in a position to give the federations money, through World Cup bonuses and the Goal Project (grass roots funding) and does things like remove all age limits for officials.

“So they can stay as long as they like, and in return he gets their votes.”

Father of football

But not everyone agrees with the criticism.

After all, Blatter has held his position for 17 years and been re-elected with sizeable majorities in the two campaigns that have come to the ballot box.

He has helped turn Fifa into a hugely wealthy organisation with a reported $1.5 billion in the bank.

There are many, especially outside Europe, who regard him very favourably and the Concacaf Congress in Nassau last month turned into something of a pro-Blatter rally with the Trinidad and Tobago FA chief Raymond Tim Kee praising him as the “father of fooball”.

The president of the Dominican Republic federation Osiris Guzman compared him to Moses, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill and Martin Luther King Jr as well as Jesus and Nelson Mandela.

Blatter himself would not go that far, but his popularity among ordinary mortals will be enough to almost certainly see him re-elected in two weeks time. – Reuters

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More awards for Mashamaite

Tefu Mashamaite once again won big, the Kaizer Chiefs captain scooping two awards at the club’s end of season function.

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Tefu Mashamaite once again won big, the Kaizer Chiefs captain scooping two awards at the club’s end of season function at Vodaworld to add to the three PSL gongs he captured.

But there was consolation for his central defence partner Erick Mathoho who had walked away empty handed from the PSL ceremony where many felt he should have got something. The defender aptly nicknamed “Tower” also walked away with two accolades on a night when most of those who contributed to Amakhosi’s slick championship triumph were duly rewarded.

All of Mandla Masango, Reneilwe Letsholonyane and Tshepo Masilela swelled their bank accounts significantly following their sterling showing in a season that saw Chiefs, not only dethrone Mamelodi Sundowns as league champions, but doing so by breaking all manner of records en route to reclaiming the title – including the most number of points (69) in the 16-team Premiership era as well as a run of 20 matches unbeaten.

The club also gave out their monthly player awards and even there it was Mashamaite and Mathoho who dominated – the defenders again grabbing two awards apiece, a feat also achieved by midfielder George Lebese.

Mashamaite walked away with the main award as the club’s Player-of-the- Season and was also voted Fan’s Player-of-the-Season.

Not to be outdone, Mathoho got the nod from the club’s fans by capturing the KC Online Player-of-the-Season gong as well as the Fair Play Award.

In this game though, it is the Player’s Player Award that just about everyone coverts – the accolade being voted for by fellow professionals, in this case teammates.

And that honour went to leftback Tsepo Masilela, who for once enjoyed an injury free season to play an influential role in Chiefs being as miserly in defence as they were in conceding a mere 14 league goals all season.

Masango had arguably his best season in Chiefs colours, the winger playing more games than he ever did and dishing out a good number of match-winning performances.

For his effort Masango was not only the club’s top scorer but was also rewarded with the Most Improved Player-of-the-Season award.

Letsholonyane’s strike against Platinum Stars was voted the best goal of the season.

All the awards

Player-of-the-Season: Tefu Mashamaite R100 000

Fan’s Player-of-the-Season: Mashamaite R50 000

Players’ Player-of-the-Season: Tsepo Masilela R50 000

Top Goalscorer: Mandla Masango R25 000

Most Improved Player-of-the-Season: Masango R25 000

Fair Player-of-the-Season: Erick Mathoho R20 000

KC Online Player-of-the-Season:

Mathoho R20 000

Goal of the Season: Reneilwe Letsholonyane R20 000

Player of the Month Winners (R10 000 per month)

August: Masango

September: Letsholonyane

Octorber: Masilela

November: Lebese

December: Mathoho

February: Mashamaite

March: Mathoho

April: Lebese

May: Mashamaite - The Star

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Hummels not joining United - report

Germany defender Mats Hummels has ended speculation about a possible transfer to Manchester United by confirming he will play for Borussia Dortmund next season.

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Germany defender Mats Hummels has ended speculation about a possible transfer to Manchester United by confirming he will play for Borussia Dortmund next season, according to a report on Thursday.

The 26-year-old has turned down an approach from the English league giants and the Dortmund captain has told Borussia he will fulfil his contract which expires in 2017, according to magazine Kicker.

“It was fair enough that Mats gave it some thought, but I have always pointed out that he is firmly part of our plans,” said Dortmund's director of sport Michael Zorc.

Zorc said he had met with Hummels and his father Hermann, who is also his agent, in which there was a “clear consensus” that he would stay with Dortmund.

Hummels fuelled speculation that he was considering a move to United in recent weeks by repeatedly admitting he was weighing up his options.

Reports in the UK media suggested Louis van Gaal's United had offered 40 million euros ($44.6m) for Hummels.

But the Germany star will now play a central role in the plans of future Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel, who will replace current boss Jurgen Klopp next season.

A bruised foot meant Hummels sat out last Saturday's 2-1 league defeat at VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga, a dress rehearsal for the German Cup final on May 30.

He should be fit for Saturday's final home match against Werder Bremen with Dortmund needing a win, and for other results to go their way, in their bid for a Europa League place next season.

Hummels, a World Cup winner, came to Dortmund in 2008 on loan basis from Bayern Munich before signing a full contract and has made 194 league appearances scoring 17 goals. – AFP

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Swallows show their class

A semblence of the performance against Leopards during the season and Moroka Swallows wouldn’t be in the relegation/promtion play-offs.

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A semblence of this performance during the season and Swallows wouldn’t be here. But then again the threat of losing one’s livelihood can bring the best out of anyone.

They were superb Swallows in beating Leopards to draw level with the Limpopo outfit on three points at the top of the tree-team promotional play-offs thanks to a Vuyisile Wana brace.

Solid in defence, they played cohesively and attacked with purpose against a Leopards side that impressed with their slick passing game. An uninformed observer would have been shocked to hear Swallows had actually finished second last in the elite league, such was their consummate display of purposeful football.

And central to their determined play was that good old evergreen veteran Siyabonga Nomvethe who covered on almost all blade of grass on the Dobsonville Stadium pitch. It was he who created the second goal for Wana late in the second half to make certain of victory, his superb pass sending the striker through on goal to seal the win.

The goal came as Leopards dominated the second half as they looked to draw level, to kill of the visiting team’s fighting spirit.

Zeca Marques’ team had returned from the break fired up after being a goal down.

In what was arguably their best 45 minutes of the season, Swallows played purposeful football that saw them keeping Leopards on the back-foot for most of the initial stanza.

And that old man Nomvethe was key to their dominance, the veteran striker toying with young Jonathan King on the left flank so much that Zeca Marques took him off just before the break.

But Swallows had already capitalised on the naivety of the lad who came to the fore via the popular Nike The Chance programme. Gifted in the dribbling department, King continuously went on forays up front and got past his markers on a number of occasions.

But in his enthusiasm for attacking, he left a gap at the back that his teammates hardly ever closed. Swallows exploited this just after the half hour mark, Felix Obada delivering a low cross from the right past the goalmouth to find Vuyisile Wana unamarked at the far post where rightback King should have been. All Wana had to do was tap the ball into the open goals to put Swallows ahead.

Earlier on Obada had two chances to score but volleyed wide and then shot tamely at Avhashoni Tshinuna. Captain Lucky Baloyi then volleyed a lose ball following a corner over when adding a second for the Birds looked easier.

But it was not a one-way traffic affair, for the visitors had scoring opportunities and should have actually scored first as they created the best chance two minutes before Wana scored.

A swift attacking move that served to illustrate Leopards’ trademark passing game ended with the talismanic Siphelele Ntshangase beating two defenders to get into a scoring chance. But when he released what appeared a goal-bound shot, Sage Stephens – who had left his line - pulled off a splendid safe by punching the ball over.

Next up for Swallows is Jomo Cosmos at the Vaal Technikon Stadium on Sunday.

Moroka Swallows (1) 2

Wana 32, 80

Black Leopards 0 - The Star

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Wilshere’s unhappy return

Jack Wilshere returned to the Arsenal starting XI for the first time since an ankle-ligament injury against Manchester United in November.

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Welcome back Jack, it has been a while. Seven months in total. Jack Wilshere returned to the Arsenal starting XI last against Sunderland for the first time since an ankle-ligament injury against Manchester United in November.

Playing at the Emirates Stadium will not be quite as he remembered it, though.

Supporters’ admiration for him is still as intense and his reception before kick-off was testament to that. But the landscape of Arsenal’s attacking set-up has changed since he had ankle surgery.

His best position is undoubtedly in central midfield — Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger knows it, and so too does England coach Roy Hodgson.But Wilshere started the match against Sunderland on the right wing. That is not where he wants to be but his chance of playing centrally looks remote.

Santi Cazorla is Wenger’s undisputed first-choice middle man as he loves his creativity, balance and poise.Francis Coquelin, who was rested, is the preferred partner for the Spaniard. He has been one of the success stories of Arsenal’s season and Wenger believes his work-rate and defensive acumen provide the perfect foil for Cazorla to strut his stuff.

But here, perhaps, is the telling factor. Wenger chose to hand Aaron Ramsey, who has occupied the right-wing slot in recent weeks, Coquelin’s central role so Wilshere, at the moment, is the fourth-choice central midfielder. Is Wilshere — a man who is key to England’s future — comfortable with that?

Wilshere loves being in the thick of the action; in the engine room where matches are won or lost. You could tell that against Sunderland, as he moved inside at any available opportunity.

Make no bones about it, though. Wilshere is fit and raring to go. He buzzed around the pitch on his return with his usual gusto and purpose.The panache in his passing is still there, too. A brilliant through-ball to set Mesut Ozil away early in the second half underlined that.The problem for Wilshere is that just as he is getting his groove back, Arsenal have two games left. He may well get another start in their final Barclays Premier League game against West Bromwich on Sunday but, unless injury strikes, he will be on the bench for the FA Cup final against Aston Villa six days later.There are, of course, the summer England games for Wil-shere to look forward to. And Hodgson, who was at the Emirates, would have been satisfied by Wilshere’s contribution.But he was replaced by Theo Walcott in the 67th minute and must now ask himself: is the Arsenal midfield now so congested that it is time to consider leaving the club? – Daily Mail

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Liverpool transfer dealings under scrutiny

Two key members of Liverpool's transfer committee who oversaw the misplaced spending of £110m last summer are under threat in an end-of-season review.

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Two key members of Liverpool's transfer committee who oversaw the misplaced spending of £110m last summer are under threat in an end-of-season review where the club's American owners will seek explanations for a disappointing campaign.

With Brendan Rodgers' position thought to be under no immediate threat and no preliminary soundings having been made to alternative managerial candidates, the fiercest scrutiny is thought to be falling on the club's head of recruitment, Dave Fallows, and Michael Edwards, the director of performance analysis.

Their statistically driven approach to recruitment has been a key factor in a transfer market strategy which saw the club spend lavishly last summer on players who have not materially improved the squad.

Fallows was brought in from Manchester City, where his role entailed assigning scouts to targets, preparing recommendations based on their work and building a database of players. Edwards was hired by Liverpool as “head of analytics” by Damien Comolli, the director of football who was released in 2012 and had worked alongside the Frenchman in a role as head of performance at Tottenham.

The two men running the player acquisition department and chief scout Barry Hunter do not take sole responsibility for the disastrous summer of spending.

FSG are thought to feel the same point of principle applies to the retention of Raheem Sterling at Liverpool as when Luis Suarez was agitating to leave two years ago. The owners are prepared to make Sterling a marginal part of the next campaign, on his current £35,000-a-week salary if necessary.

But while Suarez's desperate desire to play football ensured that he knuckled down, the owners could not be as certain about any such response from Sterling. – The Independent

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Fbregas ban reduced

Chelsea’s Cesc Fabregas has had his three-match ban following his bizarre sending off against West Browmwich Albion reduced to one game.

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London - Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas has had his three-match ban following his bizarre sending off against West Browmwich Albion reduced to one game, the Premier League champions said.

The Spaniard was shown a red card in the first half of Monday's 3-0 defeat at the Hawthorns for unsportsmanlike conduct by referee Mike Jones.

The official was in the process of booking Chelsea striker Diego Costa after he tussled with Gareth McAuley when Fabregas, standing some 20 metres away, chipped the ball towards a crowd of players and it hit West Brom's Chris Brunt on the head, prompting Jones to walk over and brandish a red card.

“The standard sanction would have been a three-match suspension,” Chelsea said in a statement on their website.

“However, following an Independent Regulatory Commission hearing earlier today, the club's claim that a three-match suspension is excessive was successful.

“Fabregas will therefore now only miss our final game of the season against Sunderland on Sunday and will be available for selection from the start of the 2015/16 campaign.”

Chelsea are eight points clear of second place Manchester City going into their final match of the season. – Reuters

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Sunderland safe for another season

Sunderland have avoided Premier League relegation by securing a draw in their clash against Arsenal.

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London - Sunderland secured their Premier League survival after manning the barricades to tough out a 0-0 draw at Arsenal, for whom a point was enough to all but seal third place and a spot in the Champions League group stage on Wednesday.

The battle to avoid relegation is now a straight shootout between Hull City and 17th-place Newcastle United, who are two points better off heading into Sunday's final round.

Hull are at home to Manchester United while Newcastle host West Ham.

Sunderland needed a point to ensure their top flight status and defended like their lives depended on it to move up to 15th, four points clear of Hull City in the final relegation place.

It was a frustrating evening for Arsene Wenger's Arsenal, who are now unable to catch Manchester City in second, but are three points clear of fourth placed Manchester United with a comfortably superior goal difference.

It was to be expected that Sunderland would arrive at the Emirates with a gameplan designed to stifle their opponents with bodies behind the ball and it proved to be a remarkably well-executed strategy.

It took 29 minutes for Arsenal to have a sniff of goal as Mesut Ozil latched on to a chipped ball over the top from Alexis Sanchez but fired high over the bar, before Olivier Giroud flashed a shot wide two minutes later.

The France forward went close again 10 minutes after the break, drawing an excellent save from Costel Pantilimon by darting to the near post and steering a sharp finish back across goal that the Sunderland keeper did well to keep out.

There was a sense that it was not going to be Arsenal's evening in front of a largely muted home crowd when Kieran Gibbs had a header well saved, Sanchez had an effort blocked and Sunderland nearly grabbed a breakaway goal as Steven Fletcher failed to beat David Ospina when through on goal.

Fletcher then had arguably the best chance of the night but somehow failed to convert a Patrick van Aanholt cross from six metres out.

Arsenal, however, continued to pile forward with Theo Walcott beating Pantilimon only to see his goal-bound effort cleared desperately by a back-tracking Sebastian Coates and Sunderland's Billy Jones inadvertently directing a cross against his own post as Arsenal pressed in vain.

The final whistle prompted ecstatic celebrations from the Sunderland players as well as manager Dick Advocaat, who masterminded his side's survival after being appointed in March.

Reuters

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Bafana bring in three replacements

Bafana Bafana have made three changes to the team preparing for the Cosafa Cup quarter-final encounter with Botswana.

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Johannesburg - Bafana Bafana have made three changes to the team preparing for the Cosafa Cup quarter-final encounter with Botswana on Sunday following injuries to three players.

Athenkosi Dlala, Puleng Tlolane and Cole Alexander have been pulled out of the original squad due to nagging injuries and have been replaced by Mduduzi Nyanda, Tlou Segolela (Platinum Stars) and Lebogang Manyama of Supersport United.

The team was given an entire Wednesday off and will leave for Rustenburg on Thursday morning where preparations for the encounter against Botswana will continue.

On Friday, Bafana Bafana are expected to play a practice match against Malawi as part of coach Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba finalising his squad for Sunday’s crucial encounter.

ANA

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Blatter foes to join forces?

The three challengers bidding to oust Sepp Blatter as president of Fifa have discussed joining forces against the 79-year-old Swiss incumbent.

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The Hague, Netherlands — The three challengers bidding to oust Sepp Blatter as president of Fifa have discussed joining forces against the 79-year-old Swiss incumbent.

A spokesman for Dutch soccer federation president Michael van Praag said Wednesday in a written statement that the three share a collective goal “to achieve change within Fifa.”

“It is good that there is a growing international coalition striving for that goal,” Van Praag’s spokesman, Sebastiaan van der Laan, said in the statement. “That is our main focus now, it is too early to talk about which candidate might have the best chance.”

Van der Laan, however, did not address a report in Dutch daily De Volkskrant that said Van Praag will likely quit the race. The story was based on anonymous Fifa sources.

Former Portugal great Luis Figo and Fifa vice president Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan are also running against Blatter.

At least one candidate is expected to withdraw before the May 29 election to help present a united opposition against Blatter, who is strongly favored to win a fifth term.

Van Praag announced his candidacy in January, saying he had the support of five federations: Belgium, Sweden, Scotland, Romania and the Faeroe Islands, as well as the Netherlands. It is unclear how much backing he has managed to secure since then. He proudly announced last month that Suriname, a former Dutch colony that still has close ties to this country, had given him its support.

In his campaign, Van Praag has cast himself as a strong and experienced administrator who wants to reform Fifa and then step aside after a single term in office to make way for a new generation.

He said when launching his campaign that Fifa under Blatter “is constantly under suspicion. Of conflicts of interest, of nepotism, of corruption.”

Van Praag is a member of Uefa’s executive committee but has appeared to be the most independent of the three challengers.

Prince Ali and Figo have both been advised by London-based consultants, whose services Van Praag said he declined. – AP-ANA

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Liverpool dare not lose Sterling fight

If Liverpool were to sell Raheem Sterling, the message would be clear - Liverpool are a selling club.

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Don’t lose this battle. Don’t buckle if you want to continue having ambitions to be one of Europe’s leading lights. The latest twist in the sorry tale involving Raheem Sterling, Liverpool and a lucrative new contract has upped the stakes and left the England international’s employers’ reputation on the line.

A trend has developed in recent years with Liverpool and their frontline players, namely that they have found it impossible to hang on to them. The lure of Spain was too much for Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano and Luis Suarez, and Fernando Torres found it impossible to reject Chelsea. When you include the sale of Pepe Reina, the retirement of Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard’s imminent move to LA Galaxy, more of Liverpool’s sheen has been removed.

You can see, then, what is at stake with Sterling. Not being able to hang on to World Cup winners and one of the hottest forwards in Europe is one thing but what message does it send out when you are unable to satisfy a precocious 20-year-old’s ambitions?

Say Sterling was to leave for Manchester City in the first week of the new window: what possible hope would Brendan Rodgers have of enticing the kind of talent Liverpool need to get back into the top four next season? Gerrard spoke of his wish to see Liverpool buy ‘players that are ready to come and fight and win and be successful’ but how many would give Rodgers and his squad a chance if they were to offload a player who was named Europe’s Golden Boy for 2014?

The message would be clear: Liverpool are a selling club who cultivate promising youngsters in their Kirkby Academy for the benefit of other teams. No player who wants to be a Champions League regular or compete for major honours would give them a second look.

That is why Liverpool have to take a stand. Sterling is not at the level that his agent claims and it is worth repeating that he is not in the same league as some 20-year-olds who have worn the Liverpool shirt. But he is an England international with pace, talent and an eye for goal.

In time he could fulfil his promise and become a top player but now he is putting his development at risk. Rodgers would be justified in banishing him from the squad for the remainder of the week, dropping him for the trip to Stoke and telling him to report back in July.

Liverpool could hold Sterling to his contract, which has two years to run, and would still be guaranteed substantial compensation if he moved somewhere else in 2017, as he would still be under 23.

This is no longer about Sterling wanting to force through his desire to get a pay rise and play somewhere else — this is about Liverpool taking a stand and preserving their reputation. They need to get tough and remind the watching world they are a big club. Not a selling one. – Daily Mail

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Swallows relying on ageing bird of prey

If Swallows are to survive the drop, Siyabonga Nomvethe will have to come out firing against Black Leopards.

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When he secured Moroka Swallows a stay of execution with yet another goal that delivered a crucial three points in their season-ending match – a 1-0 victory over Bloemfontein Celtic – Siyabonga Nomvethe was doing something that comes naturally.

Helping teams succeed is all that Nomvethe knows, the striker from KwaMashu having done so since turning professional with African Wanderers back in 1997.

Of course such was Abaqulusi’s nature as local football’s yo-yo team that even with his massive talent, Nomvethe couldn’t help them stay up – being snatched up as he was by Kaizer Chiefs almost immediately after making an impression in the elite league.

And even when he played in Italy for lowly Udinese, Nomvethe’s star always shone amidst mediocrity.

It has been the same at Swallows were season after season for the man who also turned out for Orlando Pirates, performing admirably there despite the team being generally disappointing.

It was due to his goals that the Birds came oh, so close to winning the championship four seasons ago. Swallows finishing second then, behind the Buccaneers in a race that went all the way to the final day of the season.

Swallows will once again look to Bhele to deliver the goods as they seek to avoid relegation via the play-offs. And tonight they begin that quest when they host a Black Leopards side that has already chalked up three points via a 2-0 victory over Jomo Cosmos.

Swallows welcome a Leopards outfit coached by their former coach Zeca Marques, who should know Nomvethe very well having worked with him for no less than two seasons.

But whatever tricks Marques comes up to keep the veteran striker on a leash, there is always a chance Nomvethe will come out trumps.

He has been doing it for many seasons, the former South African Footballer-of-the-Year outrunning, outplaying and outscoring many a players much younger than him. At 38-years-old, he should be considering retirement – with many players hanging up their boots at a much younger age.

But the man who represented South Africa at both the Olympics and the World Cup is still going strong and a fortnight ago, after he kept Swallows’ hope of survival in the elite league alive, he spoke of how he will still be around next season.

Many will hope it is in the PSL. For that to happen though Swallows will have to be top of the three-team table come June 3 when the play-offs come to an end. Against teams as lethal up-front as Leopards and Cosmos have been in the National First Division this season, it will take some doing, especially given Swallows’ pathetic defending which largely contributed to their finishing second bottom in the Premiership.

But with Nomvethe in their aviary, the Birds can always rest assured that the goals will come. All they need do, especially tonight, is to make sure that Roggert Nyundu in particular gets no sight of goal.

And the Swallows defence is also sure to have it hard keeping a close check on free scoring midfielder Siphelele Ntshan-gase who was on target against Cosmos at the weekend.

It is going to take some doing for Swallows to retain their Premiership status and Nomvethe will be key to them doing so. - The Star

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