A roundup of today's other soccer news in brief
Ching left out of USA squad
EXPERIENCED striker Brian Ching was surprisingly left off the United States World Cup squad yesterday when coach Bob Bradley named his final squad of 23 for South Africa.
Ching, who was out of action throughout April with a hamstring injury, was left out as Bradley opted for an inexperienced list of strikers.
LA Galaxy forward Edson Buddle, Real Salt Lake forward Robbie Findley and Herculez Gomez, who plays for Mexican club Puebla, all made the squad, along with likely starting striker Jozy Altidore.
USA (squad):Goalkeepers: B Guzan (Aston Villa), T Howard (Everton), M Hahnemann (Wolves) Defenders: C Bocanegra (Rennes), J Bornstein (Chivas), S Cherundolo (Hannover), J DeMerit (Watford), C Goodson (IK Start), O Onyewu (AC Milan), J Spector (West Ham) Midfielders: DM Beasley (Rangers), M Bradley (Monchengladbach), R Clark (Frankfurt), C Dempsey (Fulham), L Donovan (LA Galaxy), M Edu (Rangers), B Feilhaber (Aarhus), S Holden (Bolton), J Torres (Pachuca). Forwards: J Altidore (Villarreal), E Buddle (LA Galaxy), R Findley (Real Salt Lake), H Gomez (Puebla).
Trapattoni visits Duffy as he recovers in hospital
REPUBLIC of Ireland defender Shane Duffy is back on his feet just days after surviving a life-threatening injury.
The 18-year-old Everton player was visited in hospital yesterday morning by international boss Giovanni Trapattoni, his assistant Marco Tardelli and skipper Robbie Keane in the wake of the Republic’s 2-1 friendly victory over Paraguay.
Duffy was able to get out of bed and walk, much to the delight of the trio, and he remains on target to be discharged from Dublin’s Mater Hospital at the weekend.
Speaking after training in Malahide yesterday, Tardelli said: “He was very good. Sometimes they feel the pain, but it was very good. We are very happy.” Duffy lost 3.6 litres of blood after rupturing his hepatic artery in a collision with Irish Amateur team goalkeeper Adrian Walsh last Friday evening, and came within seconds of death.
His recovery has come as a huge relief as Trapattoni and his players prepare for their final fixture of the season.
United insist they will pass Uefa test
MANCHESTER United insist they will pass the new Uefa financial fair play test which is set to become part of European football’s rules today. Under the regulations to be rubber-stamped by Uefa’s executive committee, clubs in European competition will only be allowed to spend what they earn – although some leeway will be given for the first six years of the scheme.
Clubs will also still be permitted to have large debts, but only if they can service the interest payments as part of their overall spending.
In the Premier League, the new rules would threaten the participation of Manchester City, who made a €110 million loss last year, in European competition as well as Chelsea – who made a €55million loss – unless they change their spending habits.
Arsenal and Tottenham both made a profit and would pass the test, and Manchester United claim they would too – despite payments of €53 million annually to service the interest on the owners’ €600 million bond scheme.
Birmingham sign towering striker
BIRMINGHAM City have signed towering Serbian international striker Nikola Zigic on a four-year-deal, the Premier League club said yesterday.
The 29-year-old Zigic, who stands 6ft 8in tall and is in Serbia’s provisional World Cup squad, joined from La Liga side Valencia for an undisclosed fee, Birmingham said on their website (www.bcfc.com).
The ex-Red Star and Racing Santander player endured a disappointing spell at Valencia following a reported €13 million move in 2007 and spent last season back on loan at Santander, scoring 13 goals in 19 games.
- Guillermo Francois to be released by West Ham after helping the club to escape relegation. Franco, currently preparing for the World Cup with Mexico, admits he is already looking for a new club.
- Inter Milanmidfielder Wesley Sneijder has quashed rumours linking him with a return to Real Madrid this summer.
Campbell considers Celtic
SOL Campbell (35) has revealed he is “seriously considering” a move to Celtic. The former England defender confirmed last week he was flattered by Celtic’s interest but that his preference would be to stay at Arsenal.
He said: “I’ve spoken with Neil (Lennon) about moving to Celtic. And I’ve been impressed with what he had to say. We’re talking, although we haven’t yet discussed figures. Nothing is set in stone.”
