Posts Tagged ‘Sports’

Ronaldo set for return in Champs League

September 15th, 2008

Alex Ferguson is determined Manchester United will become the first club to defend its Champions League title, and what better time to reintroduce Cristiano Ronaldo after ankle surgery than for the start of the group stage.

It is highly likely the Portugal winger, who struck 42 goals last season, will make his highly anticipated return from July’s ankle surgery against Villarreal on Wednesday.

It should help the Red Devils obliterate memories of Saturday’s first Premier League loss at Liverpool in seven years.

“You have to recover, that’s the name of the game,” Ferguson said on Sunday. “It’s the Champions League and I think we are in a good group and I think we have a good chance of qualifying.”

Striker Giuseppe Rossi has missed Villarreal’s opening league games with a sprained left ankle and is doubtful for the return to Old Trafford.

Group E also includes the Celtic team from Ferguson’s native Glasgow and Danish side Aalborg.

“The way I look at the Champions League is to get to 10 points,” Ferguson said. “If you get that you know you have qualified and you can look forward to February when it really starts to kick-in.”

Twenty-four hours earlier, Chelsea, which was denied the European Cup on penalty kicks in May, hosts Bordeaux at the start of a long journey to the final at AS Roma’s ground. The Italians are also in Group A and meet Romanian Champions League newcomers CFR Clujnapoca.

A Champions League triumph is top of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich’s priority list, and a second place wasn’t enough to save former manager Avram Grant’s job.

“For me, the Champions League is not more important than the Carling Cup,” said new manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, referring to England’s second-tier knockout competition. “It is important but it is not more important than a league game. We need to think game by game.

“If I say the Champions League is the most important then my players will ask why they need to bother in the other games.”

Germany midfielder Michael Ballack is set to return from a knee injury. Bordeaux has doubts over the fitness of Brazilian defender Henrique, who bruised his thigh in Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Marseille, while fullbacks Mathieu Chalme and Benoit Tremoulinas are both suspended.

Bordeaux will be looking for playmaker Yoann Gourcuff for inspiration after his acclaimed France debut over Serbia last week.

“We know that Chelsea will be favorite, but we just have to go there and give it our best,” Gourcuff said. “We should not feel inhibited in any way. We just have to keep playing our own way.”

It is a different story for Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez who is under more pressure to deliver the club’s first English league title since 1990 than repeat his 2005 Champions League triumph.

The five-time European champion begins in Marseille with lingering concerns over the fitness of star striker Fernando Torres, who stayed on the bench for Saturday’s victory over Manchester United.

“I am not reassured when I see how Liverpool played against Manchester,” Marseille coach Eric Gerets said. “That was impressive.”

The Reds took just one point from its first three group stage matches last season, but recovered to seal its progression to an eventual semifinal finish with a 4-0 victory at Marseille.

Atletico Madrid should have strikers Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan fully recovered after the international break for tomorrow’s other Group D meeting with PSV, which is the Spaniards’ first Champions League match since 1996.

Preparing to host Sporting Lisbon tomorrow, Barcelona’s morale was hit by Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Racing Santander.

The team’s worst start to a season since 1973 has piled the pressure on inexperienced coach Pep Guardiola, who is now without midfielder Alexander Hleb for three weeks after spraining his left ankle Saturday.

Basle and Shakhtar Donetsk are the other teams in Group C.

Jose Mourinho begins his quest to repeat his 2004 triumph with FC Porto at Panathinaikos with his new Inter Milan side tomorrow in Group B, which also features Werder Bremen and Cypriot newcomer Anorthosis Famagusta.

Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster is hopeful of steering the nine-time champion beyond the last 16 of the Champions League after its failure to so in the past four years.

In the other Group H clash, UEFA Cup winner Zenit St. Petersburg travels to Juventus, which is back in Europe after a two-year absence following the Italian match-fixing scandal.

Also Wednesday in Arsenal is at Dynamo Kiev and Porto hosts Fenerbahce in Group G, while Fiorentina visits Lyon and Steaua Bucharest meets Bayern Munich in Group F.

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Sehwag’s views on senior player in india

September 13th, 2008

India’s dashing opener Virender Sehwag debunked speculative theories on the future of senior players in the Test team.

Sourav Ganguly’s omission from the Irani Trophy team has led to intense speculation that it is the beginning of the phase out of the senior batsmen from the Test side.

Sehwag said that the four experienced players would be least affected as they have faced such situation before and know how to tackle it.

‘I do not think they will be under any extra pressure to perform. They are experienced and they have proved themselves in any situation. If at all they are under any pressure, it will be the pressure of their own expectations. Throughout their career, they have tackled pressure. It is nothing new for them,’ Sehwag said Friday on the sidelines of a promotional event of Neo Cricket.

The four pillars of Indian batting had an average year by their own lofty standard. Rahul Dravid and Ganguly were replaced with youngsters in the one-day team with captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and selectors going for fresh legs. With brilliant showing in Australia and Sri Lanka, the new brigade have staked their claim for Test berth.

The senior batsmen had a poor series in Sri Lanka where rookie Ajantha Mendis cracked open the world’s best players of spin.

Sehwag said they are way ahead of others and should not be judged on the basis of just one series.

‘If you are comparing me with them, then I can say that I am very small in front of these players. They will always remain above me.’

Sehwag also said he was sure that Yuvraj Singh will soon be back in reckoning.

‘Yuvraj too had a bad season. Any player can have one bad series. I had a whole bad year. He is a talented player and I am sure that he will soon find his form.’

Asked whether he feel bad that his name for Test captaincy is not doing the rounds, Sehwag said: ‘I do not get affected by these things. I continue to give my suggestions to the captain. I advised Anil Kumble on some occasions and it clicked. I will continue to do that.’

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Gilchrist says, Dhoni good but Sachin best

September 12th, 2008

Australian opening player Gilchrist says, Mahendra Singh Dhoni may have pipped Sachin Tendulkar to the ICC ODI Player of the Year award but Adam Gilchrist believes the Little Master is still the best batsman around.

Here on a promotional tour, Gilchrist said he does not doubt Dhoni’s ability but Tendulkar is simply the best.

“Well, it’s hard to compare whether statistically or in your mind or opinion. It’s a big award for Mahendra to win but I would still say Sachin is the best player of recent times,” Gilchrist told NDTV.

Making a comparative study of both the Indians, Gilchrist said, “Dhoni is firepower, (it’s more about) his explosiveness and unpredictability. If there is anything about Sachin, it’s his technicality, he is beautiful to watch and clinical whereas Dhoni is almost carefree, playing without fear that can hurt you most.

“He (Dhoni) hits some extraordinary shots that are quite unique to the game. You never see them in textbooks but are equally effective,” said the Australian.

Gilchrist was also against rushing Dhoni into the Test captain’s job even though he felt it was just a matter of time before the star stumper takes over the reins from Anil Kumble.

“Well, his time will come I believe,” Gilchrist said.

“There is no need to rush him in, I’m sure it’s just a matter of time. He looks to me like the top character who can handle both Test and one-day captaincy, and the wicket-keeping and batting roles and the many, many sponsors he has,” Gilchrist quipped.

Though no more part of the Australian squad, Gilchrist is not immune to issues affecting the Aussies and he sounded equally worried about the uncertainty over Andrew Symonds’ fate.

“I doubt he (Symonds) will retire, the passion still exists in Symmo, he’s got a bit more than he wants to accomplish. He just needs a bit of time, some people can’t comprehend the stresses, strains and pressures you are under, when you are under the microscope so much. Nowhere is the attention more than in India. Symmo is feeling the pinch a little bit and its great courage by the leadership group to say to him look you are not obviously fully focussed and we’ve got to get you move aside. It’s a tough one for Symmo,” Adam Gilchrist feel.

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