Record price for cup: The oldest surviving version of the English FA Cup was sold for £478,400 to an anonymous bidder at auction yesterday - a world record price for an item of soccer memorabilia.
The cup was presented to winning teams from 1896 to 1910 as a replacement for the original which was stolen. The first FA Cup final was played in 1872. The previous record for football memorabilia was a replica Jules Rimet World Cup trophy which sold in 1997 for £254,500.
Former England international Alan Ball also sold his 1966 World Cup winner's medal and cap at the auction to raise money for his family. The medal sold for £164,800 and the cap £43,200.
Eto'o staying
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has insisted he will never sell striker Samuel Eto'o despite rumours of interest from Chelsea. Eto'o has won the championship with Barcelona in his first season at the Nou Camp and is the top scorer in the Primera Division.
"Samuel is not for sale, not even for all the money in the world," said Laporta. "He is a Barcelona player and will give many years of joy to the club. On top of this, the Cules (Barca fans) have taken him to their hearts."
Preston book place
Preston booked their place in Cardiff to face West Ham in the Championship play-off final on Monday week after Derby striker Grzegorz Rasiak blew his side's hopes by missing a late penalty. North End protected their healthy first-leg advantage with a gritty defensive display to secure an aggregate 2-0 victory. They were given a helping hand with Rasiak's missed spot-kick, but Preston's own defensive prowess was the key factor behind their success following an absorbing 90 minutes. Billy Davies' side lie on the brink of a possible return to the top-flight for the first time in 44 years.
Spurs get Uefa boost Tottenham may play in next season's UEFA Cup after finishing second to rivals Arsenal in the Premier League Fair Play rankings. Arsenal will receive £30,000 prize-money for being the most sporting team in the 2004-05 season, but with Arsenal already in the Champions League it will be Spurs, as the highest-placed team who failed to qualify for Europe, who will go into next month's draw to decide which European side wins one of two places in next season's competition.
Player power claim
Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood revealed his frustration at the rise in player power as he claimed that Ashley Cole wanted his pay to be almost tripled in order to sign a new contract.
Hill-Wood, who turned down the England defender's initial demand of between £60,000 and £70,000 a week, admitted: "We have no control over the players now, they control us."
Cole, who is paid a relatively lowly amount of around £27,000 a week, was given a "final offer" of £55,000 a week and rejected the deal, it was said.
In brief . . .
Didier Drogba will remain at Chelsea next season, according to his adviser, but the Ivory Coast striker admitted to the French media on Wednesday he felt homesick and had not adapted to life in England . . . Luis Figo was included in the Portugal squad for next month's World Cup qualifiers against Slovakia and Estonia yesterday after reconsidering his decision to take a break from international football after Euro 2004 . . . Celtic insist they will not press the panic button as the bidding war for Craig Bellamy started yesterday with the club confirming they will hold talks with the striker after the Scottish Cup final.
