United’s Hernandez suffers injury blow

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Manchester United striker Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez suffered a broken collarbone playing for Mexico in a goal-less friendly against Honduras.

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Manchester United striker Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez suffered a broken collarbone playing for Mexico in a goal-less friendly against Honduras and is expected to miss the upcoming Gold Cup.

It was a first-half injury that took out the 27-year-old Guadalajara native in the Mexicans' final tune-up match before the biennial North American regional championship tournament that begins next week.

Hernandez has 40 goals in 73 caps for Mexico and losing him is a major blow to Mexican hopes of taking the Gold Cup crown for a seventh time in 13 editions of the event, having won in 1993, 1996 and 1998, 2003, 2009 and 2011.

Estimates from match broadcaster ESPN were that “Chicharito” would need four to six weeks to recover.

The injury took place when Hernandez was fouled from behind by Honduran defender Brayan Beckeles as he went to play the ball and fell awkwardly onto his right arm and shoulder.

He rose to a seated position and pointed to his right shoulder as he motioned for a trainer.

While his teammates played the second half, Hernandez was taken to a local hospital.

“Chicharito” has 59 goals in 154 appearances for Manchester United and he scored nine goals in 33 matches for Real Madrid last season on loan.

The Mexican team enters the Gold Cup on a seven-match winless streak, its longest since 2001.

Mexico is set to face Cuba, Guatemala and Trinidad and Tobago in Gold Cup group stage matches. – AFP



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Mourinho supports Cech’s Arsenal move

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Petr Cech's transfer from Premier League champions Chelsea to local rivals Arsenal has been backed by Jose Mourinho.

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London - Czech Republic goalkeeper Petr Cech's transfer from Premier League champions Chelsea to local rivals Arsenal has been backed by the west London club's manager Jose Mourinho.

Cech was Chelsea's first-choice for 10 years but lost his place to Belgium's Thibaut Courtois last season and joined Arsenal on Monday.

Mourinho said he would have preferred Cech, 33, to remain with Chelsea this season but with the player no longer number one choice and wanting a move, supports the decision.

He also thanked Cech for his part in the club's success.

“Petr has been a great servant for Chelsea for 11 years and helped this club to win almost everything there is to win,” Mourinho told the club website (www.chelseafc.com) on Wednesday.

“I always said I wanted him to stay but I understand Petr needed to move on to play first team football every week.

“Sometimes you have to respect the wishes of someone who has earned so much respect with his service and actions for your club. I support the owner's decision to honour the player in this way,” Mourinho added referring to Roman Abramovic.

“It is very rare in football to make a decision like this and for that reason I am proud of my club for making it. There are not many clubs in the world big enough to be able to make that decision.

“Petr's success at this club will always to be remembered and we thank him for everything he did.”

Cech, who made his Chelsea debut under Mourinho in August 2004 and won three league titles under the Portuguese coach plus the FA Cup and League Cup, stressed their mutual respect.

“He (Mourinho) had to make his decision at the start of last season, I had to make my decision at the start of this season but I will always keep the best regards for him because I believe that we had so much success and so much respect for each other,” said Cech.

“He is one of the best managers in the world. Now, we will be opponents but it will not change our relationship, I believe.

“I learned a lot from him and one of those things was that if you have to make a hard decision, you need to make sure that you do it if you believe it is the right choice.” – Reuters



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Arsenal ready to win title - Cech

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Petr Cech believes Arsenal are ready to clear the final hurdle needed to end their Premier League title drought.

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Prague - Goalkeeper Petr Cech believes Arsenal are ready to clear the final hurdle needed to end the Premier League title drought, and said he was overwhelmed by the support he has received from fans and teammates at his new club.

Cech, the most successful keeper in Chelsea's history having won four Premier League titles and one Champions League, said his decision to sign with Arsenal this week came down to a belief the London club can win a first league title in 12 years.

“The last few days were really overwhelming,” Cech told reporters. “The welcome messages from my teammates and Arsenal fans were absolutely unbelievable.

“Last season it was a great season (for Arsenal), but there was something missing, just a little last jump over the hurdle. I believe this team has the potential to challenge for trophies.”

FA Cup holders Arsenal have not won the Premier League since 2004 and finished 12 points behind champions Chelsea last season.

The 33-year-old, a long-serving Chelsea goalkeeper, reiterated he never thought he would leave Stamford Bridge but had no alternative after becoming second-choice to Belgian Thibaut Courtois last season.

Cech, who will play one of his first games for Arsenal against his former club in the Community Shield at Wembley on Aug. 2, will join Arsenal's training sessions in the second week of July before the club heads to Asia for exhibition matches.

“I am looking forward to the new chapter, to the new challenge and I believe that what I have achieved at Chelsea I will achieve at Arsenal too,” Cech said.

Reuters



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Costa completes ‘dream’ Bayern move

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Bayern Munich have added an additional option to their midfield by buying Douglas Costa from Shakhtar Donetsk.

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Kiev - Bayern Munich have added an additional option to their midfield by buying pacy Brazil international Douglas Costa from Shakhtar Donetsk on a five-year deal, the German champions said on Wednesday.

Bayern did not publish financial details but Shakhtar said the Bundesliga side had agreed to pay 30 million euros ($33.3 million) for the 24-year-old, who joined the Ukrainian club from Gremio in 2010.

“A dream has come true for me today,” Douglas said on Bayern's website after signing his contract.

“I'm proud to become a player for Bayern, following in the footsteps of so many magnificent Brazilian players,” he added.

“I'm looking forward to playing for this magnificent team and will do everything I can to fulfil the expectations placed in me.”

Under coach Pep Guardiola, Bayern strolled to a third straight Bundesliga title last season, and their 25th German league crown overall.

However, they came up short in the Champions League, losing to Guardiola's former club Barcelona, the eventual winners, in the semi-finals.

They were eager to snap up Douglas as an option on the wings with Franck Ribery nursing a long-term injury and Arjen Robben turning 32 in January.

“Douglas Costa will be good for our team,” sporting director Matthias Sammer said.

“He has great technical ability, a powerful left foot, he is very agile and extremely quick.”

Douglas was in the Brazil squad at the Copa America currently being played in Chile and will join up with his new team mates on July 11.

He made 203 appearances and scored 38 goals for Shakhtar, winning five domestic league titles, three Cups and four Super Cups.

Reuters



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Liverpool complete Clyne deal

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Liverpool have signed Southampton and England right back Nathaniel Clyne on a long-term deal, the Premier League club said.

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London - Liverpool have signed Southampton and England right back Nathaniel Clyne on a long-term deal, the Premier League club said on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old, who had one year left on his Southampton contract, has signed for a fee reported in British media to be around 12.5 million pounds ($19.57 million).

Clyne becomes Brendan Rodgers's sixth signing of the close season as the Liverpool boss continues to overhaul his squad following a frustrating campaign.

Clyne told Liverpoolfc.com: “I'm delighted and it's a dream move for me to come here and play for such a big club with all of its history. I can't wait to get started.

“As soon as Liverpool showed their interest in me, I was happy and just wanted the deal to go through.”

Liverpool finished sixth last season - one place above Southampton - but have already bolstered their ranks with the signings of Roberto Firmino, James Milner, Danny Ings, Adam Bogdan and Joe Gomez.

Former Crystal Palace defender Clyne signed for Southampton in 2012 and has been a consistent performer on the south coast, making 94 Premier League appearances and scoring three goals.

He was a goalscorer for Southampton at Anfield on the opening weekend of the last campaign, blasting into the Kop end net in a 2-1 defeat.

His consistent form earned him his England debut against Slovenia last November and he has now got five England caps.

Clyne becomes the fourth Saints player to make the switch to Merseyside since the start of last season, following in the footsteps of Rickie Lambert, Adam Lallana and Dejan Lovren.– Reuters



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Bafana ready for Mauritius

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Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Jackson Mabokgwane says preparations for the second leg of the 2016 Chan qualifiers against Mauritius are going better than the last time.

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Bafana Bafana and Mpumalanga Black Aces goalkeeper Jackson Mabokgwane says preparations for the second leg of the 2016 Chan qualifiers against Mauritius are going better than the last time, when they had three training sessions cancelled ahead of the game.

“We’ve just had our second training session, everything is looking good, and we have almost all the players in camp, so we are quite okay at the moment.

“We had about three training sessions cancelled ahead of the first leg, which was a bit frustrating for the technical team and for the players as well, so at least now we have almost the whole squad at training and a couple of days to prepare,” said Mbokgwane.

Even though Shakes Mashaba’s men only had one training session ahead of the first leg, they went on to beat Mauritius 3-0 at the Dobsonville Stadium thanks to a brace by Black Leopards midfielder Siphelele Ntshangase and Orlando Pirates striker Tham-sanqa Gabuza.

Mabokgwane added that having Itumeleng Khune back in the national team is a good thing and a motivation to him, and is quite happy to be competing with someone who has been the No1 ‘keeper for the country in a long time.

“Itu and I go a long way back, from junior national teams. We are good friends off the field, we motivate and encourage each other, so I am happy that he is back.

“And for me I am excited that I am now competing with someone who has been No1 for the country for quite a long time.

“It is also a challenge for me to push my game and make sure that we continue with the healthy competition that has been there with him and Senzo (Meyiwa) and all the other ‘keepers.”

Mabokgwane, on the other hand, also reflected on changes at his club, where Aces will start the 2015/2016 campaign under the guidance of the experienced Turkish coach Muhsin Ertugral, who took the reins at the club from Clive Barker in May.

“We are all quite excited at the club with the coach we have, he is a very good and experienced coach, both internationally and locally. We are all excited to have him and we are looking forward to working with him.

“We also had a great coach when we started the season with Clive Barker, but it is a different dimension all together right now; we have to adjust to different tactics, different mentality and different coaching.

“The difference will be in the style of coaching and it does raise the bar, in terms of a new coach, new players for the new season.We are looking forward to it,” Mabokgwane explained.

Bafana Bafana will depart for Mauritius on Friday, where they will lock horns with the The Dodos at the Stade Anjalay in Mauritius on Sunday.



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Messi just as happy with making assists

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As Lionel Messi has developed during his career he has become an ever-more prolific provider of assists as well as a lethal goalscorer.

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As Lionel Messi has developed during his career he has become an ever-more prolific provider of assists as well as a lethal goalscorer and he gave another wonderful display of creativity at the Copa America on Tuesday.

The Argentina forward, who has yet to find the net from open play in five games at the tournament in Chile, set up three goals for his team mates in a 6-1 drubbing of Paraguay that secured a clash against the hosts in Saturday's final.

It was the first time Messi made three assists in a single game for his country and only the second time in his career after he achieved the feat playing for Barcelona in a King's Cup match against Levante in January 2014.

The 28-year-old has 31 assists for club and country so far in 2014-15, two short of his record of 33 from 2011-12.

“It really doesn't bother me that I am not scoring,” Messi told reporters after the match in Concepcion.

“Hopefully my goal will come in the final,” he added.

“The important thing is to lift the national team as high as possible and it doesn't matter who gets the goals.”

Messi is attempting to win the Copa America to cap a superb season when he helped Barca win a treble of Champions League and domestic league and Cup titles.

He has bounced back in style from a disappointing 2013-14 campaign, when Barca failed to collect major silverware and Argentina were beaten 1-0 by Germany in the World Cup final.

Argentina are trying to win the Copa America for the first time since 1993, having lost to Brazil in 2004 and 2007 before being knocked out on penalties in the quarter-finals on home soil in 2011.

“Winning the Copa America would round off something spectacular,” Messi said.

“I think we are coming into the match in good shape, but we will be playing a team with very good individual players.

“Both sides always try to play good football and not leave the opponent any time on the ball.”

If he wants to score in Saturday's final, Messi knows the man in the Chile goal he will have to beat very well: Barcelona team mate Claudio Bravo. – Reuters



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Rampant Argentina thrash Paraguay

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Argentina produced their best performance of the Copa America so far to crush Paraguay and set up a classic final against hosts Chile.

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CONCEPCION, Chile - Argentina produced their best performance of the Copa America so far to crush Paraguay 6-1 and set up a classic final against hosts Chile.

Angel di Maria scored twice and Marcos Rojo, Javier Pastore, Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain also found the net in a brilliant display orchestrated by an inspired Lionel Messi.

Argentina had scored only four goals in their four previous matches but Messi said it was not because the team had not been playing well.

“We talked about that just before the match and we said it was just chance that we hadn't scored more because we've been playing well,” Messi said.

“Today all the goals came at once.”

Gerardo Martino's side took the lead after 15 minutes when Messi swung a free kick in from the left, Rojo failed to connect cleanly with his first touch but swept the ball home from close range with his second.

Argentina doubled their lead 12 minutes later and again Messi was the provider, threading an inch-perfect pass through the Paraguayan defence for Pastore to run on to. His powerful low shot gave goalkeeper Justo Villar no chance.

Things went from bad to worse for Paraguay when both their strikers, Derliz Gonzalez and Roque Santa Cruz, limped off injured.

Santa Cruz's replacement, Lucas Barrios, gave them hope with a goal just before the break but in the second half Argentina were unstoppable.

Minutes into the second half Pastore burst through midfield and fed Di Maria, who buried a left-foot shot into the bottom corner of the net.

Six minutes later Messi destroyed the Paraguayan defence with a mazy run to set up Pastore. His shot was parried by Villar but Di Maria was on hand to slot home the rebound.

On 80 minutes Di Maria turned provider, crossing from the left for Aguero to head home, and minutes later Higuain came off the bench to score a sixth.

Argentina will face Chile at Santiago's national stadium on Saturday. – Reuters



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Pearson, Leicester part ways

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Leicester City have sacked manager Nigel Pearson because of a breakdown in his relationship with the club's owners, the club said.

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London - Leicester City have sacked manager Nigel Pearson because of a breakdown in his relationship with the club's owners, the Premier League side said on Tuesday.

Pearson guided Leicester to top-flight safety in the final matches of last season after they appeared to be doomed to relegation and they finished 14th in the Premier League.

The club said their directors recognised the success Pearson had brought Leicester in his two spells in charge.

“However, it has become clear to the Club that fundamental differences in perspective exist between us. Regrettably, the Club believes that the working relationship between Nigel and the Board is no longer viable,” the statement said.

“Leicester City's owners, Vichai and Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, and the board of directors would like to place on record their thanks to Nigel for the considerable contribution he has made during his time with the Club and wish him well in the future.”

The statement added that the owners had always acted in the best interests of the club and remained “wholly committed” to development and investment so that Leicester would remain competitive in the Premier League.

Assistant managers Craig Shakespeare and Steve Walsh will take charge of the first team while the club look for a new manager.

Pearson, 51, took over for a second spell at Leicester in November 2011 and led them back to the Premier League from the Championship. – Reuters



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Blatter will skip women’s final

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Embattled Fifa boss Sepp Blatter has decided not to attend the final of the women’s World Cup in Canada.

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New York - Fifa President Sepp Blatter will not travel to Canada for the final of the women's World Cup on July 5 for personal reasons, a US-based lawyer for Blatter said on Tuesday.

Senior executives of Zurich-based Fifa were charged with corruption on May 27 by prosecutors in the United States over bids for major soccer tournaments dating back 24 years and involving up to $150-million in purported bribes.

Blatter came under pressure to step down, and he announced on June 2 that he would do so.

US prosecutors have not accused Blatter of wrongdoing but his stewardship of world soccer's governing body is under scrutiny, sources familiar with investigations in the United States and Switzerland have said.

“He's not going to go to the finals in Canada,” said the lawyer, Richard Cullen. “He has informed the organisers of that and cited personal reasons.”

Cullen said that Fifa Senior Vice-President Issa Hayatou of Cameroon would preside at the trophy ceremony after the final in Vancouver instead.

This will be the first time Blatter has not presented the trophy to the winners of the women's competition, which is held every four years, since he became Fifa president in 1998.

Blatter, the self-styled “godfather of women's football”, said before the tournament began on June 6 that he was looking forward to being in Canada. The tournament's semi-finals will be contested by the United States and Germany on Tuesday and England and Japan on Wednesday.

Investigations by US and Swiss authorities also include scrutiny of how Fifa awarded World Cup hosting rights to Russia and Qatar for the 2018 and 2022 men's tournaments.

Reuters



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Chile coach banking on Sanchez

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Chile need Alexis Sanchez shine as they try to end their wait for a first Copa America, coach Jorge Sampaoli said.

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Santiago - Chile need Alexis Sanchez to recover his best form as they try to end an almost century-long wait for a first Copa America, according to coach Jorge Sampaoli.

Sampaoli's team reached the final with a 2-1 win over Peru on Monday and will meet the winners of Tuesday's semi-final between favourites Argentina and Paraguay at the national stadium on Saturday.

“When Alexis is not in the fullness (of form) that he has us used to, Chile feel it,” Sampaoli said.

“If he is feeling good, he's the most decisive player in this team. We must recover him well because he's vital to us,” added the Argentine.

Sanchez has shown flashes of his class in the tournament but contributed only one of Chile's 13 goals in five matches.

Sampaoli suggested the pressure from home fans to reach the final as hosts and win the 99-year-old tournament for the first time affected the team.

Chile were not at their best trying to break down a Peru side reduced to 10 men for 70 minutes after a red card for defender Carlos Zambrano, he said.

“This was the match in which we most lost our shape. Defensively the team struggled a lot to get their shape to recover the ball, we usually get it back much quicker than today (Monday),” Sampaoli said.

“Our anxiety played against us,” Sampaoli told reporters.

Defender Mauricio Isla, scorer of the goal that gave Chile a 1-0 win over 2011 champions Uruguay in their quarter-final, echoed that sentiment.

“It wasn't our best match, we had been showing good touch, great finishing and today we got tired,” he said.

“Peru complicated us quite a bit, even with a man less. I think the pressure got to us.”

The Peruvians were not given much of a chance before the tournament but Sampaoli believes they can carry their much improved form into the 2018 World Cup qualifiers starting in October.

“(Peru) grew throughout the tournament and their big names became stronger and are in great form,” said Sampaoli of the work of their coach Ricardo Gareca in the short time he has been in charge.

“From midfield towards the front they have nothing to envy any national team in the Americas.”

Peru had a poor 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign and are still looking to reach the finals for the first time since 1982.

Reuters



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Cardiff to host 2017 Champions League final

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The Millennium Stadium will host the 2017 Champions League final, Uefa general secretary Gianni Infantino said.

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Nyon, Switzerland - The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff will host the 2017 Champions League final, Uefa general secretary Gianni Infantino said on Tuesday.

The Friends Arena in Stockholm will be the venue for the 2017 Europa League final.

It will be the first final of Uefa's flagship competition to be held in Wales, but the 12th time it will be staged in the British Isles, with seven previous finals at Wembley, three in Glasgow and one in Manchester.

The Millennium Stadium, which is owned by the Welsh Rugby Union, opened in 1999 and staged the English FA Cup finals from 2001 until 2006 while Wembley was being rebuilt.

It has a capacity of 74,500 and staged soccer matches during the Olympic Games in 2012.

It will be the second major Uefa showpiece staged in the Welsh capital after the Cardiff City Stadium provided the venue for the European Supercup match between Real Madrid and Sevilla at the start of last season.

The Friends Arena in Stockholm opened in 2012 and the Europa League final will be the first Uefa club competition final to be staged in Sweden, which hosted the 1992 European Championship.

Uefa also announced that the 2017 Supercup match, the European club season curtain-raiser between the winners of the Champions League and Europa League will be staged in Skopje in Macedonia.

The venue for the 2016 Champions League final is the San Siro in Milan and the Europa League final will be at St Jakob Park in Basel.

Reuters



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Bafana should only play at FNB stadium

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Newly appointed Safa Technical Director Neil Tovey believes that Bafana Bafana’s matches should be played at FNB Stadium only.

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Newly appointed Safa Technical Director (TD) Neil Tovey believes that Bafana Bafana’s matches should be played at FNB Stadium and nowhere else in the country.

Tovey was over the weekend appointed Safa’s TD in Nasrec, Johannesburg on a five-year deal.

Among his many responsibilities, the former Bafana skipper is expected to oversee a roll out of training of coaches, as well as developing young football talent within the country.

At the SAB Under-21 National Championships in Soshanguve, Pretoria yesterday, Tovey stated that he won’t be interfering with Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba’s coaching methods. However, he will offer advice whenever he feels it necessary.

“I made it quite clear that I won’t have time to run around behind the senior national team, given the amount of work I’ll have to do as a Technical Director,” Tovey said. “Yes I’ll be there to lend a hand. Not from a coaching perspective per se, but to talk to the technical team and exchange ideas with regards to, for example, where a national team match should be played.

“To be quite honest, I was not happy we played Gambia (in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier) in Durban. The game should have been played at altitude to make the Gambian team suffer. In that game they were panting and out of breath in the last 15 minutes of the game. I believe they’d have been out of breath in the last 45 minutes had we played them at altitude.

“I understand these decisions are influenced by finances. But I believe that financial perspectives can be applied when it comes to friendly matches. This is the only time when the national team should play outside of Gauteng,” he added.

“If you’ve got a national stadium then that’s where you need to be playing your national games. Otherwise why should you call it a national stadium? You’ve got to turn it into a fortress, a place other national teams will dread.”

Meanwhile, Northern Cape started off their U-21 National Championship campaign with a 1-0 win over Gauteng. USSA beat North West 3-1, while the Western Cape were held to 1-1 draw by Mpumalanga. Gauteng were subjected to another defeat as they lost 3-2 against defending champions Free State. It proved to be Free State’s day as they went on to beat Mpumalanga 2-1 in a tight encounter. KwaZulu Natal lost 2-0 to Limpopo. - The Star



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Gervinho’s ‘obscene’ transfer demands

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Gervinho’s requests for a helicopter and a private beach as part of the deal that would take him to Al-Jazira were described as 'obscene' by the Emirati club.

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Requests by Gervinho for a helicopter and a private beach as part of the deal that would take him from Roma to Al-Jazira were described as 'obscene' by the Emirati club, according to reports on Tuesday.

Gervinho was set to end his mitigated two-year spell with the Serie A club and join Al-Jazira in the United Arab Emirates this week on a reported four-year deal worth 13m euros.

But the move collapsed because of Gervinho's string of demands, which also included accommodation for his family and regular airplane tickets to travel to his native Ivory Coast, said La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Reports from the Emirates suggest Gervinho's demands alerted the club to possible future problems with the player, and they are not expected to pursue the deal any further.

Gervinho remains on the market but will now be expected to turn up for Roma's first training camp of the summer at their Trigoria base just outside Rome on July 5. – AFP



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Wolfsburg’s De Bruyne ‘not for sale’

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Wolfsburg has sent a “hands off” signal to the clubs chasing Kevin de Bruyne by insisting their Belgium midfielder is not for sale.

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Wolfsburg has sent a “hands off” signal to the clubs chasing Kevin de Bruyne by insisting their Belgium midfielder is not for sale as they look to improve his contract.

Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain have all been linked to the 24-year-old attacking midfielder who helped steer Wolfsburg to a Champions League place next season and scored in last month's German Cup final win over Borussia Dortmund.

De Bruyne has a contract with Wolfsburg until 2019 and Wolfsburg's director of sport Klaus Allofs says they want to sit down and offer him an improved deal to keep him at the Bundesliga's runners-up.

“Kevin has a contract until 2019, so the signal has already been sent out. He will stay with us,” Allofs told German broadcaster Sport1.

“We've said we will look at his contract.

“The aim is to take into account financially Kevin's extraordinary development and I think we will reach an agreement here very quickly.”

The Belgian attracted plenty of attention after scoring 16 goals and setting up 29 more in all competitions in a stellar season after joining from Chelsea where he was given few opportunities by Blues boss Jose Mourinho.

Wolfsburg will be back in the Champions League next season for the first time since 2009 having finished second only to Bayern Munich in the German league last season. – AFP



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