GENEVA (AFP) – Football’s world governing body FIFA said Tuesday it has suspended Peru’s Football Association (FPF) with immediate effect over a row with the government over alleged political interference.
The suspension covers "all international sporting contact for its clubs, national teams, referees and officials," FIFA said in a statement.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter had warned last week that the FPF had one week to resolve its conflict with the government or face suspension.
Lima says it does not recognise FPF head Maneul Burga, who it accuses of not respecting the law.
Burga was reelected in 2007 although the Peruvian Institute of Sports (IPD) had banned him from any post of responsibility for five years for alleged non-compliance with the country’s laws regarding the running of sporting institutions.
FIFA regards the government’s stance as undue political interference.
"FIFA wishes to make clear that the FPF will only be allowed to return to the fold of the world and South American football communities on the basis of negotiations with the President and Board of the FPF who were elected in October 2007," it said.
Written by: AFP
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ROME (AFP) – Chelsea forward Didier Drogba has been in talks with the agent of Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho, the Gazzetta dello Sport website reported on Tuesday.
The report claims Drogba and one of his representatives had dinner at a Fulham restaurant with Mourinho agent Jorge Mendes and Inter general manager Marco Branca on Monday night.
Drogba was a firm favourite of Mourinho’s when the Portuguese coach worked in west London and the Ivory Coast star was said to have burst into tears when Mourinho announced his departure.
Drogba initially claimed he would leave Chelsea and there were rumours that Mourinho would try to lure him to the San Siro when he took over from Roberto Mancini in the summer.
But despite publically declaring his interest in Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard during the off season, Mourinho made no move for Drogba.
However, the former Marseille forward has had a difficult campaign this term due to injury, suspension and the loss of his automatic starting role to the in-form Nicolas Anelka.
Mourinho has an embarrassement of riches up front with eight forwards at Inter but he has stated he wants to let some of them leave.
He has also had problems with Brazilian forward Adriano’s discipline and the suggestion that Mourinho is targetting Drogba could spell the end of Adriano’s time at the club.
Written by: AFP
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JOHANNESBURG, Nov 25 (Reuters) – Liverpool will make more money from corporate boxes than new supporters when they finally move to their new 60,000-seater stadium in Stanley Park, the club said on Tuesday.
Ian Ayre, Liverpool’s commercial director, said it was estimated more than 50 percent of income on match days will come from the sale of seats in corporate boxes rather than the increased numbers in mainstream seating.
The new stadium will increase corporate seating from 3,000 currently at Anfield to 10,000. Liverpool has 40,000 season ticket holders with a waiting list of a further 65,000.
“The new stadium is clearly a business opportunity. But it will be important to maintain the integrity of the Liverpool brand and fan experience at Anfield,” Ayre said during a seminar on stadium commercial opportunities in Johannesburg.
Central to the new stadium is the preservation of the famous Kop, packed each week by home fans.
It will increase from 12,000 seats to 20,000, around the same number the Kop attracted when it was standing room only.”
Ayre stood by the club’s decision to delay the construction of the stadium until the global credit crunch eases.
“It’s been a strange period but our decision to delay construction was certainly the right one,” he added. “We have since seen the costs come down.” (Reporting by Mark Gleeson; Editing by Martin Petty)
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LONDON (AFP) – Aston Villa’s bright start to the season could be undermined by fatigue, coach Martin O’Neill has said.
The Birmingham outfit reported back for pre-season training at the start of July because of their involvement in the Intertoto Cup.
And O’Neill, aware that he must make do with one of the smaller squads in the Premier League, admits he may have to "prioritise" in terms of his targets and ease the schedule for some of his squad during the remainder of the season.
"We have been at it, playing competitively since July, because we were involved in the Intertoto Cup," he said.
"At some stage or another, it will probably catch up and then we have to go and prioritise.
"I am delighted with the progress we have made in the UEFA Cup, which is what we set out to do, but at some stage around Christmas time I am going to have to sit down and think about this.
"We have eight more games to play before January. I am delighted with the progress but the boys have put a big effort in.
"Someone pointed out that we by Christmas we will have played nine or ten more games than by the same stage last season.
"Against Manchester United on Saturday, you saw Gareth Barry, having played in mid-week for England, trying to kick one clear on the edge of our penalty box in the 93rd minute of the game.
"It was a fantastic effort but that eventually takes its toll."
O’Neill insists, though, his players are currently relishing the hectic schedule.
"If we have a chance of making progress, I’ll see about things but at the moment players love to play," he added.
Written by: AFP
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ZAGREB (AFP) – Coach Branko Ivankovic has parted ways with Croatian football champions Dinamo Zagreb on the eve of a UEFA Cup clash with Spartak Moscow, the club said Tuesday.
"Our club and… coach Branko Ivankovic have agreed to part three days before the ‘game of the decade’ in which Dinamo will confront Spartak Moscow in the third round of Group D in the UEFA Cup," Dinamo said.
"The club board has decided that until the end of the first half of the season to be led by (Ivankovic’s deputy) Marijan Vlak," the Croatian club said in a statement posted on its website.
The departure of Ivankovic, a former coach of Iran’s national team, comes six months after the 54-year-old signed a four-year contract with Dinamo.
He served as Dinamo’s coach from 2006 until January this year, when he resigned after a row with the club’s former sporting director Zdravko Mamic, who is now vice president.
After 16 match days, Dinamo tops the Croatian league table but traditional rivals Hajduk Split are breathing down their neck, trailing the Zagreb club by only one point.
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Arsene Wenger’s appointment of Cesc Fabregas as captain is more than just a strategic move, designed to ward off Barcelona attempts to recover the one that got away. The decision also says something significant about the way Wenger sees Arsenal Football Club.
Wenger has changed the youth system, the players’ diets and the style of play and he has now appointed a captain made in the image of another gifted Catalan, Josep Guardiola i Sala.
The first time I was in a room listening to Wenger speak was after a Champions League game between Barcelona and Arsenal in 1999. Arsenal had just managed to claim a 1-1 draw, despite being comprehensively outplayed in the first half, and Wenger was extolling the virtues of Barca’s then captain.
“Guardiola was technically perfect,” he said, with something of a “purr” in his voice. “In the first half we tried to close him down to stop him using the ball but that didn’t work. In the second we just had to stop the ball getting to him in the first place.”*
Here’s what Wenger said when asked about the position of captain this week: “I don’t believe too much in leadership. I believe more in good passing than a guy who jumps around with his hands in the air and plays the leader.”
In England, where the captaincy often goes to the most ‘inspirational’ player, Wenger’s words probably sound strange but, thinking back nine years, I can’t help feeling Fabregas, a ball-playing midfielder who commands respect by the way he plays and leads by example, is the captain Wenger has wanted all along.
And if the move helps him recover his outstanding form of last season, and keeps Barcelona at bay for a year or two more, so much the better.
PHOTO: Gallas and Fabregas attend a team training session in London Colney, Nov 24, 2008. REUTERS/ Eddie Keogh
* I paraphrase, of course. It was a memorable quote, but nine years is a long time…
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I have a suggestion on how to clear up inconsistencies with handballs.
Law 12 states that “a direct free kick is awarded to the opposing team if a player…handles the ball deliberately”.
In reality, we all know this rule isn’t always applied correctly. When the ball strikes a hand or an arm which is well away from the body and all the stadium can see it, the referee will invariably give a foul whether it was deliberate or not (we can also argue whether the player is being naive by having his arms flailing about).
I think we should take ‘deliberately’ out of the law and replace it with “…gains an advantage from handling the ball”.
A perfect example was Sunday’s 2-2 draw between Torino and AC Milan. Hosts Torino scored a late equaliser from the spot after the ball hit Milan defender Kakha Kaladze on the thigh before striking his outstretched arm.
Milan were furious but Torino would have been as well had the penalty not been given. If the ball had not struck Kaladze’s arm it would have flown across the face of goal and given the home side a chance to score.
If the ball had bounced down off Kaladze’s arm into the path of a Torino attacker, then there would have been no advantage to Milan and therefore it should not be a foul.
Defenders don’t deliberately score own goals but they count. Forwards don’t deliberately run offside but they are still penalised. What’s the difference with handball?
I know controversies make football so enjoyable but if we sorted out the handball rule, we’d still have tackles, offsides, red cards and goalline technology to argue about…
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BORDEAUX, France (AFP) – Chelsea can wrap up a spot in the knockout phase of the Champions League for a seventh straight season with a win over Bordeaux here on Wednesday.
But the hosts will go into the match knowing Luis Felipe’s Scolari’s men have been spluttering of late and a win at their compact Chaban-Delmas stadium will turn Group A on its head.
Bordeaux go into the tie on six points just behind AS Roma on goal difference and a point behind the west Londoners while outsiders CFR Cluj of Romania are also still in the hunt and kick-off at home against the Italians with four points.
In the very likely scenario the group will go down the final match, Chelsea host Cluj while Bordeaux travel to the Italian capital on December 9.
A quick look at the respective seasons so far of Chelsea and Bordeaux would explain why Scolari’s expensively assembled side of internationals go into the match as odds-on favourites.
Chelsea have a domestic record of 10 wins, four draws and one defeat with a goal difference of plus 28 as they top the table in England while Bordeaux are currently sixth in France with a modest record of seven wins, four draws and four defeats and a goal difference of plus eight.
However Girodins coach Laurent Blanc can call on his English experience from his time at Manchester United as a foundation and he is also certain to remind his players that Chelsea have already been beaten three times in all competitions this campaign.
The Blues suffered unexpected defeats in the Champions League away to Roma not to mention their spectacular exit in the League Cup when they were ousted by second division Burnley.
The third defeat was against bogey side Liverpool who ended their 75 match unbeaten record at Stamford Bridge back on October 26.
Both sides are coming off home draws at the weekend when Newcastle held Chelsea to a 0-0 draw in London while Bordeaux’s golden boy Yoann Gourcuff rescued a point at home against Brittany outfit Rennes in a match that finished 1-1.
It was a result that lifted the spirits of Blanc’s men after losing 2-1 in their last outing at champions Lyon.
"Two straight defeats would have been tough before hosting Chelsea and the Rennes result is good for morale," said Gourcuff, who is on loan from AC Milan.
The French runners-up from last season will also welcome back former French international goalkeeper Ulrich Rame who appears to have shaken off a stomach muscle injury.
"It was too soon to play against Rennes but I hope to be ready for Chelsea," he said.
Scolari meanwhile has admitted he has to change his strategy to overcome the defensive tactics of clubs that come to Stamford Bridge but will take heart from his side’s scintillating form away from home where they have won a Premier League record 10 straight wins, including seven from seven this season.
"It is easier for us to win away from home," said Scolari. "We will go to Bordeaux for the victory and we need a win in France to qualify for the next round.
Chelsea also have to improve on their whipping in Rome if they hope to repeat last season’s achievement of reaching the Champions League final.
"If we are going to perform like that, we are not going to get anywhere near the Champions League final’ admitted captain John Terry in reference to the Rome reverse.
Chelsea will qualify with a victory while Bordeaux need a point or a win to keep alive their chances of going into the final match at Rome with a chance of reaching the knockout phase for the first time.
Written by: AFP
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LIMA (SW) – FIFA has temporarily banned Peruvian teams from participating in any international tournament. The measure was taken as result of an ongoing conflict between the country’s government and its football association.
Earlier, FIFA gave the two sides until Monday to come to a solution. As none was found, the suspension was the only right step, according to the governing body.
Center of attention is Manuel Burga, who was recently appointed as chairman of the Peruvian FA. The national government disagreed with the appointment and refuses to acknowledge Burga.
As a result, Peru’s three Copa Libertadores spots remain empty and the national team will probably not be playing its remaining World Cup qualifiers. How this will affect the CONMEBOL qualifiers is uncertain.
Written by: Jonathan Roorda
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MILAN, Italy (AFP) – Inter Milan will be looking to wrap up qualification to the Champions League second round and fulfil coach Jose Mourinho’s prediction when they host Panathinaikos in Group B on Wednesday.
Back in September after the Italian champions were surprisingly held 1-1 at home by Germans Werder Bremen, their Portuguese boss claimed that he was confident his team would still progress to the knock-out stages and before their return date with Bremen in early December.
Back then Inter had four points from two matches, having won impressively 2-0 in Athens, and four points from their two encounters against Cypriot surprise package Anorthosis Famagusta has put the San Siro based outfit on the brink of qualification.
A victory over the Greeks would guarantee Inter top spot in the group while a point would be enough to make sure their name goes into the hat for the second round draw in February as runners-up at least.
Only an unlikely defeat would see them needing to get a result in Bremen in two weeks time in order to progress.
Panathinaikos will be looking to try to snatch a point otherwise they risk seeing their interest in the competition end before their final home match against Anorthosis.
If the Cypriots win at home to Werder and Panathinaikos lose then Anorthosis will be assured of second spot in the group.
But the task facing the Greeks is a daunting one, particularly given the way Mourinho’s team played in a 1-0 home in over Juventus on Saturday.
Many have claimed that was Inter’s best performance of the season although one of their other better showings was in Athens two months ago.
Having already seen Inter turn on the style, Panathinaikos will also be worried that there is an extra determination in the blue and black half of Milan to succeed in Europe this season.
Mourinho’s predecessor Roberto Mancini was dismissed despite guiding the team to three straight scudetto crowns and many perceived his sacking as due to a failure to achieve similar success in Europe.
Last year Inter crashed out in the second round at the hands of Liverpool, who beat them home and away.
But Inter president Massimo Moratti claims there is no difference to their approach to the Champions League this season from any other.
"There is a feeling about the Champions League every year, not in any one in particular," he said.
"We always hope to have a team and a squad that is strong enough and has the necessary characteristics to challenge on two fronts and to win both competitions."
Moratti agreed that Saturday’s performance was the best of the season and he is confident that his team can keep improving.
For now they will continue to do so without wingers, though. Mourinho usually prefers a three-pronged attack with two wide players and one central striker but he has not been impressed with the form of his wide men so far this season and they have all found themselves parked on the bench.
Portugal winger Ricardo Quaresma did not even make the bench for Saturday’s match while Brazilian Mancini and Nigerian Victor Obinna played no part either.
There was a recall for Brazilian striker Adriano, who played well up front alongside Sweden forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic and that could be the partnership that starts against the Greeks.
"Adriano did what the team needed of him," said Mourinho after the Juve match.
"I think that with (Juve centre-backs Nicola) Legrottaglie and (Giorgio) Chiellini it was important to have an "animal" like Adriano in the mix.
"He did good defensive work, did well up front, and he’s also quick. Not all strikers do that much."
Written by: AFP
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