RONALDO is fully cured of his mysterious knee ailment and can resume his career, his Brazilian trainer said yesterday.

Nilton Petrone, hired by Inter Milan to care for their star player, denied the rumour that Ronaldo had a career-threatening injury.

"It only depends on his coach. He's ready to start," Petrone said, adding that Ronaldo has "jumper's knee," a pain caused by excessive strain on the joint from sudden starts and stops.

"It's nothing that can't be controlled or that represents a threat to his career," Petrone added.

The two-time FIFA Player of the Year made his first appearance in nearly two months on Tuesday night, playing the final 34 minutes of Inter's 2-1 loss to Parma. He is now on course to play for Inter in the second leg of their Champions' League quarter-final against Manchester United. The Football Association's 2006 World Cup bid yesterday scored a vital home win as Wembley shareholders finally rubber-stamped the sale of the historic stadium.

Although the majority of individual shareholders were against the sale, the block vote of City institutions saw that the Wembley board of directors won the day ensuring the FA-backed English National Stadium Development Company (ENSDC) will take control of the venue in a £103 million deal.

The stadium will close in August 2000 and the bulldozers will move in a month later, meaning this year's FA Cup final will not be the last played under the Twin Towers.

Mexico has become the ninth country to bid to stage the 2006 World Cup, even though its application arrived at FIFA headquarters 20 days late.

The Mexican Football Federation blamed problems with airmail deliveries for the 20-day delay and FIFA's executive committee now has to rule on whether the bid should be considered.

Mexico has already twice staged the World Cup - in 1970 and in 1986, when it stepped in when the original host nation Colombia could not fulfil its requirements.

The qualifying round draw for the 2002 World Cup finals will be held in Tokyo on December 7th, FIFA said yesterday. The organising committee for the World Cup, being staged jointly by South Korea and Japan, also announced that qualifying matches will take place between March 1st, 2000 and November 11th, 2001. Both decisions will have to ratified by the FIFA executive committee. Plans Japan to increase the number of matches in the finals has been rejected by FIFA. Although the scheme has not been formally discussed by FIFA's executive committee, the plan has no chance of being accepted a top FIFA official said yesterday.

FIFA have approved emergency medical plans, including evacuation, when Nigeria host the World Under-20 Championships next month.

There have been increasing fears voiced by some coaches over the standard of the medical conditions that exist in the West African state.

In a bid to allay fears, FIFA's medical committee were told of special provisions that have been put in place. They include specially trained personnel, a dedicated telecommunications network and the provision for seriously injured or sick players to be evacuated if necessary.

The two heads of England's Pre- mier League resigned yesterday, the league announced in a brief statement.

The news was given at a press conference at a meeting of Premier League club chairmen. Chief executive Peter Leaver and chairman Sir John Quinton resigned after a row over their appointment last year of former Sky Television executives, Sam Chisholm and David Chance, as media advisers to the premier league.

Dave Richards of Sheffield Wednesday has been appointed acting chairman. The resignations mean that English soccer's two most important soccer bodies are without leadership following the resignation of Graham Kelly and Keith Wiseman, the chief executive and chairman of the Football Association, in recent months.