Tottenham receive offer for Kranjcar, Bale out of Fulham match

LONDON: Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp yesterday confirmed the club had received an offer from Werder Bremen for Niko Kranjcar but said he was keen to hang on to the Croatian midfielder.

Kranjcar’s future at White Hart Lane has been thrown into uncertainty following his failure to command a place in Spurs’ starting line-up and the recent signing of Steven Pienaar from Everton.

Redknapp said that while Kranjcar had indicated he favoured a move, he doubted the 26-year-old would end up in the Bundesliga.

“There is a German club (Bremen) that have come in for him. They have offered good money for him but I’m not keen to lose Niko,” Redknapp said ahead of Spurs’ FA Cup game with Fulham tomorrow.

“He is a good player, a fantastic player. I don’t think he wants to go to Germany and play.

“I don’t think he feels that’s an option for him. If that’s the case then he will stay here and that’s great for us as well.”

With Spurs still challenging in the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup, Redknapp believes Kranjcar will have a role to play as the fixtures pile up towards the back end of the season.

“We have a lot of games coming up. We are going to need a squad,” said Redknapp, who signed Kranjcar from Portsmouth in 2009.

“These games are going to be coming thick and fast ... It’s going to be Saturday, midweek, Saturday, midweek. Niko is going to be an important player for us.”

Meanwhile, Tottenham midfielder Gareth Bale will miss tomorrow’s tie at Fulham with the back injury that forced him off against Newcastle last week.

“He’s been to see a specialist and it shouldn’t be too long, a bit of work on it and he should be okay,” Redknapp told reporters yesterday.

“He’s never, ever needed an operation. That’s the last resort when you have a back problem. He has a little back injury that went into a spasm, but he should be back in 10 days.”

Striker Roman Pavlyuchenko and leftback Benoit Assou-Ekotto are fit after missing the trip to Newcastle while goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes is back in training following a shoulder injury.

However, midfielders Wilson Palacios (knee) and Sandro (back) are doubtful.

“We’ve one or two knocks and we’ve only really got two central midfielders fully fit in Luka Modric and Jermaine Jenas,” added Redknapp.

  

Hammers sign striker Demba Ba

LONDON: West Ham have signed Senegalese striker Demba Ba from Bundesliga outfit Hof­fen­heim, the Premier League club confirmed yesterday.

A statement on West Ham’s official website said the 25-year-old forward had signed a 3½-year deal which would run up to June 2014.

The transfer fee and terms of the deal were not disclosed but West Ham said the final figures would be “heavily dependent on appearances”.

Ba, who has scored nine goals this season in the Bundesliga, said he was relieved to have finally signed for the Hammers.

“It was a long story but now I’m happy because it had a really good end and I am glad to be here,” Ba said. 

  

England FA plan to improve quality of elite youngsters

LONDON: The English FA announced 25 recommendations yesterday to improve the way players are developed from the age of five with the ultimate aim being to end the country’s decades-long wait for a major trophy.

There may be resistance to some of the ideas from powerful elite clubs but after decades of failure at every World Cup since England’s triumph in 1966 and every European championship, the Football Association is taking action.

The primary goal is to improve the technical standards of youngsters or else risk losing out on major honours for the foreseeable future.

“We have not won anything for 44 years and I am not saying these changes will make us world champions overnight,” the FA’s Director of Football Development Trevor Brooking told a media briefing at Wembley Stadium.

“But we must improve the way we develop our young players and the way they are coached from the age of five to 16 and beyond.

“We need to develop more and better English players and hopefully they will eventually break into the first teams of our elite clubs and into the international team.

“We have made huge strides in the last 10 or 12 years with, for example, mini-soccer for boys and girls, then organised seven-a-side or nine-a-side leagues where kids can learn how to play the game and develop their skills.”

Everything from the introduction of smaller-sized pitches for juniors to the mandatory release of players for international age-group tournaments are covered in the proposals which are expected to be approved by the FA board in April.

“We are now seeing the first green shoots of young players who have come through our coaching system and are beginning to play at professional level,” added former international Brooking.

“This has not just come about because of our failure at the World Cup in South Africa.

“These recommendations will hopefully produce better quality players, with more players developing through to elite level and breaking into our top clubs.”

One obvious barrier to the aims is that most Premier League clubs not only field many foreigners but scout the world for the best youngsters who they develop in their own academies.

“There is a need for us to develop more of our own home-grown talent in the next few years,” said Brooking.

“The 5-16 age group is really key. What happens at junior school level is crucial. We want to produce better players in this age group and eventually give clubs a greater choice of players, although it is better now than it was.

“Obviously the clubs have been buying in overseas talent, but with the euro as it has been for the last three or four years, it is probably costing them 30 or 40% more to bring the same player in than it did a few years ago.”

  

Roma beat Juventus to reach semis

MILAN: Mirko Vucinic helped to send AS Roma into the Italian Cup semi-finals with a superb goal to set up a 2-0 win at Juventus on Thursday.

The in-form Montenegro forward picked up the ball on the side of the area midway through the second half and effortlessly curled it into the far corner.

Rodrigo Taddei added a second goal in added time with an acrobatic finish to ensure Roma progressed to meet holders Inter Milan in the last four.

The bad-tempered encounter was riddled with fouls and injuries but Claudio Ranieri’s side just about deserved to beat his former club with Simplicio also having a header saved.

Juve piled on the pressure towards the end but never really came close to scoring despite fielding a strong side as they became the latest big club to play their top players in a previously unloved competition.

Roma will play Inter in April and May’s two-legged semi-finals after Leonardo’s side beat Napoli on penalties on Wednesday.

Serie A leaders AC Milan take on Palermo in the other semi-final after the pair got past Sampdoria and Parma respectively earlier this week. 

  

Leonardo’s honeymoon over as Inter Milan hit the wall

MILAN: Inter Milan were walking on air after Leonardo’s arrival but the Serie A champions have been running through sand in their last two games and tomorrow’s visit of seventh-placed Palermo will be another stiff test.

Last weekend’s 3-1 league defeat at Udinese was Inter’s first in six games under the Brazilian coach, who replaced Rafael Benitez on Dec 24 after last term’s treble winners had endured a difficult first half of the campaign.

Wednesday’s fortunate Italian Cup quarter-final win at Napoli was thanks to a penalty shootout after a poor attacking display from Inter in the 0-0 draw, where the hosts peppered the goal for long spells.

Injuries to Dejan Stankovic and Ivan Cordoba took some of the gloss off the win but the pair are suspended for the Palermo game anyway, as is leftback Cristian Chivu.       

“We must keep in mind that the side is adapting to the change in coach and this has a bearing on performances,” said Leonardo, whose fifth-placed side trail leaders and his former club AC Milan by nine points.       

Striker Diego Milito may return from a minor thigh problem and last season’s club top scorer is badly needed with deputy Goran Pandev looking utterly unconvincing in front of goal.       

His problems underline why Inter want another striker before the end of the January transfer window with Sampdoria’s Giampaolo Pazzini the favourite to join after Samp president Riccardo Gar­rone said “we will see” when asked about a deal.

“If we can add a player it will be an improvement,” Leonardo said.       

Milan have already been busy in the transfer window with Antonio Cassano and Dutch duo Mark van Bommel and Urby Emanuelson arriving.

The latter two made impressive debuts in midfield in Wednesday’s 2-1 Italian Cup win at Sampdoria while Cassano has produced several magical passes in recent weeks.       

Milan, though, are not firing on all cylinders at the moment and visit Catania today in the Sicilians’ first home outing under new uncompromising coach Diego Simeone. Their quirky Massimino ground is a tough place to go at any time and Milan’s long injury list adds to the difficulty. 

  

Huge task for Hercules Modest club hope to beat Barca again

MADRID: The chances of lightning striking twice are minimal but that is the faint hope promoted Hercules hang on to as they seek the unlikeliest of doubles over La Liga leaders Barcelona today.

The modest club from Alicante are the only side to have beaten Pep Guardiola’s champions this season, when they recorded a shock 2-0 victory at the Nou Camp in September.

The two-goal hero that day was new signing Nelson Valdez (pic), and the Paraguay striker has gone on to notch seven so far this campaign, forming a productive partnership with French striker David Trezeguet, the club’s top scorer with nine.

“It isn’t impossible to beat Barca,” Valdez told sports daily AS. “I think we have a better chance of winning here than we did there because we are playing in front of our own fans. We could spring a surprise.”

Hercules are 12th in the standings and have been kept away from the relegation places by their impressive home form. They have won their last four league games at the Rico Perez, scoring 13 times.

Barca are on a roll, however, and have yet another record in sight. They are seeking their 15th consecutive league victory when they could match the La Liga-best mark set by Real Madrid in the 1960-61 season.

Barca hold a four-point lead over their great rivals Real, who are in second, and thumped Almeria 5-0 in a King’s Cup semi-final first leg on Wednesday. Real had a tougher time, battling to a 1-0 first leg win away to holders Sevilla, but the two look on course for a Cup final meeting.

Karim Benzema scored Real’s goal, his second this week, reminding his unconvinced coach Jose Mourinho of what he is capable of on the day Emmanuel Adebayor landed in the Spanish capital to complete his loan signing from Manchester City.

The Togolese striker will probably need some time to adapt before being thrown straight into the fray.

After the hostile atmosphere of the San­chez Pizjuan, Real travel to another cauldron tomorrow for what is usually a bruising encounter for visitors at struggling Osasuna’s Reyno de Navarra Stadium.

Third-placed Villarreal, who are nine behind Real, visit fifth-placed Espanyol tomorrow in what promises to be an attractive match between two of the best footballing sides in La Liga outside of the top two. 

  

Euro 2012 co-hosts Ukraine risk suspension

NYON (Switzerland): Euro 2012 co-hosts Ukraine could be suspended if their government does not act quickly to stop political interference in the country’s football federation, UEFA said on Friday.

European soccer’s governing body said Ukraine had been given one week to resolve the situation and that suspension would make it impossible to stage the 2012 tournament along with Poland.

“It is clear that if the Ukraine federation is suspended from membership, it would not be tenable to play the final round of the Euro 2012 in Ukraine,” UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino (pic) told reporters.

Infantino said that if nothing has changed by Feb 4, then the ruling body’s emergency committee would have to decide on a suspension.

“The UEFA exco would have to decide on the suspension of the football federation of Ukraine,” he said.

“A suspension means that the clubs cannot take part in our competitions, and we have still three clubs, one in the Champions League and two in the Europa League,” he said.

“The national teams would also be suspended from official competitions, and as a concrete step, as a preventative we have decided to place the Ukrainian Under-21 team in a group of six (for qualifying),” Infantino said.

“We discussed this and we have written a letter to the football federation of Ukraine requesting, as FIFA did, that the necessary concrete steps are taken and confirmation provided this has ceased,” he said.

“We are confident that this situation can be solved swiftly to the satisfaction of everyone,” Infantino said, adding that soccer’s world governing body FIFA had also written to the federation.

“Political interference is banned, it’s something we cannot allow,” he said.

Ukraine’s preparations have also been dogged by delays in building stadiums and other infrastructures.

  

Asian Cup raises US$330,000 for flood victims in three nations

DOHA: Ticket revenue from the Asian Cup semi-finals raised around US$330,000 for flood victims in Australia, Sri Lanka and Thailand, competition organisers revealed on Thursday.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Qatar Football Association (QFA) had earlier announced that money from ticket sales would go to help people affected by devastating floods in the three countries.

Tournament director Tokuaki Suzuki said organisers would now seek to transfer the money to an organisation capable of distributing it to victims.

“There is an organisation for the flood victims and we will communicate with them to distribute the money,” he said, without specifying the name of the organisation.

The Asian Cup semi-finals saw Japan beat South Korea 3-0 on penalties after a 2-2 draw following extra time, while Australia thrashed Uzbekistan 6-0.

A joint statement by AFC president Mohamed Hammam and QFA chief Sheikh Hamad Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al Thani earlier this week said the flooding had been tragic.

“Our thoughts and wishes go to all those who suffer in our fellow Asian nations of Australia, Thailand and Sri Lanka, recently struck by flooding and national disasters,” it said.

“It is the joint decision of the AFC, the QFA and the organising committee of the Asian Cup to offer the proceeds of the semi-final matches of the AFC Asian Cup to a disaster relief fund in order to help those affected.

“Our condolences are offered to those who have lost their loved ones during these tragic events.”

Recent flooding across Australia has wrought unprecedented damage with at least 22 people dead, while more than one million people have been affected by monsoon floods in Sri Lanka, with some 43 people perishing.

In Thailand, thousands of people were affected by floods in the south this month.