FA Cup kicks off with a new format

PETALING JAYA: The 22nd edition of the FA Cup Cup competition kicks off today with a difference – there won’t be a second chance in the first and second round.
Previously, the first and second round matches were played over two legs (home and away).
The two FA Cup opening round fixtures scheduled for today are the Harimau Muda ‘A’ vs SDM Kepala Batas match at the Shah Alam Stadium (8.45pm) and the T-Team Terengganu vs Kelantan match at the Sultan Ismail Nasiruddin Shah Stadium in Kuala Terengganu (8.45pm).
A total of 26 teams will compete in the FA Cup competition, with defending champions Negri Sembilan, Kedah and Selangor receiving a first-round bye.
The focus today will be in Kuala Terengganu where the two Super League sides will be locking horns at such an early stage.
Kelantan, who won the Malaysia Cup last year, will be hoping to make amends in the FA Cup competition after their second round exit at the hands of Kedah last season.
T-Team, who have signed up three top names from Kelantan – Indra Putra Mahayuddin, Mohd Norfarhan Mohd and Azizi Mat Rose – will be hoping to find their rhythm after a poor start in the Super League campaign with only one point from four matches.
Coach Yunus Alif’s club side are languishing second from bottom in the 14-team league.
Kelantan, on the other hand, are going great guns and are leading the Super League standings with 10 points
from three wins and a draw.
The Red Warriors have a formidable strike force, with the likes of Norsharul Idlan Talaha, Mohd Nizad Ayub and S. Chanturu leading the charge. Their new signings – K. Solihin and Nurul Azwan Roya – have also fitted in well.
 

Roberto Carlos joins Anzhi Makhachkala

MOSCOW: Former Brazil fullback Rberto Carlos has joined Russia’s Anzhi Makhachkala on a 2½ year deal, the club said on Wednesday.

“The Anzhi Makhachkala football club officially announces it has signed a labour agreement with 2002 world champion defender Roberto Carlos,” Anzi said in a statement on their website (
www.fc-anji.ru).

Roberto Carlos, who helped Brazil win the 2002 World Cup and played more than 100 times for his country, ended his contract with Brazilian club Corinthians by mutual agreement on Saturday.

The 37-year-old former Real Madrid defender was targeted by fans during violent protests against the team following their shock early exit from the Libertadores Cup this month

 

Wilshere shows there’s hope for England

LONDON: Arsenal and England say they are ready to build their teams around Jack Wilshere, and the gifted teenage midfielder showed just why with a stunning individual display against Barcelona.

Up against the formidable midfield trio of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets – the heartbeat of Spain’s 2010 World Cup-winning side – Wilshere demonstrated he has the character to match his undoubted talent by leading Arsenal’s fightback in their 2-1 victory in the first leg of the Champions League last 16.

“He was outstanding,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. “He wasn’t fazed by the occasion. In difficult periods when we were under pressure, he wanted the ball and kept the ball. He played really well.”

Wilshere is enjoying a sensational breakthrough season at the north London club, marking it with his first start for England in last Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Denmark in Copenhagen.

Playing firstly as a holding midfielder before moving further upfield in the second half at the Parken Stadium, he took to international football with consummate ease. He had no problem transferring that form to the Emirates Stadium a week on.

“It’s been a great couple of weeks – the best of my life,” Wilshere said after his coming-of-age display against the Spanish champions.

Wilshere is a rarity in English football in that he is a midfielder who looks comfortable on the ball, whenever it is given to him. The recent failure of England’s national team can be seen as stemming from their inability to keep possession against the major sides in big tournaments, but that could change with Wilshere as the commander in the engine room.

He is even outshining Cesc Fabregas, for so long Arsenal’s totem in midfield, at the moment.

Wilshere, who spent half of last season on loan at Premier League team Bolton in a bid to pick up some valuable topflight experience, was part of an Arsenal midfield that was blown away against Barcelona.

“There was a spell in the first half where for about 20 minutes we didn’t touch the ball. But we knew they were going to do that,” he said.

“I watched these (Barcelona) players in the World Cup and they were the best team there, so I knew a bit about them before the game. But once you get into a game, you get used to them,” Wilshere said.

“We had to go up a level in the second half and we passed it around better. We had to carry on playing the Arsenal way and we did that.” 

 

Winning starts for new kid and old hand

JOHANNESBURG: A new kid and an old hand on the African coaching block were celebrating yesterday after debut victories in friendly matches.

Serb Goran Stevanovic got his Ghana career off to a perfect start as the four-time African champions turned up the heat during the second half to thrash Togo 4-1 in the Belgian city of Antwerp.

Frenchman Henri Michel, coaching in Africa for 17 years with mixed results, guided 2012 African Nations Cup co-hosts Equatorial Guinea to a 2-0 victory against fellow minnows Chad in capital Malabo.

Ivory Coast edged Mali 1-0 in southern French town Valence as African teams took advantage of FIFA friendly dates to fine-tune ahead of Nations Cup qualifiers later next month.

Former Partizan Belgrade coach Stevanovic has a hard act to follow as compatriot Milovan Rajevac took the ‘Black Stars’ to the 2010 Nations Cup final and the last eight of the World Cup six months later.

“There is a lot of pressure but that is normal for a national team coach. Ghana have been doing well and I realise what is expected of me. Matching what has been achieved will not suffice,” he admitted.

The Serb wants the ‘Black Stars’ to lift the Nations Cup trophy in Gabon next February and the first step was whipping the modest Togolese through goals from Dominic Adiyiah, John Mensah, Samuel Inkoom and a Serge Akakpo own goal.

Amewou Komlan levelled for the ‘Sparrowhawks’ by converting an early second half penalty, but it was one-way traffic towards the Togo penalty area after that.

Michel is used to handling ‘big guns’ – having coached Cameroon, Morocco, Tunisia and Ivory Coast plus leading clubs Raja Casablanca of Morocco, Zamalek of Egypt and Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa.

Equatorial Guinea are ranked only 44 of 52 African football countries and represent the greatest challenge for a 63-year-old who steered France to third place at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.

Nigeria-born Daniel Ekedo scored from the penalty spot seven minutes after half-time in Malabo and an Abbas Maigue own goal on 74 minutes sealed the fate of the Chadians, who lie six places higher on the rankings.

Former African Footballer of the Year Didier Drogba wore the orange of Ivory Coast for the first time since Francois Zahoui replaced Sven-Goran Eriksson as coach last August and set up the decisive third-minute goal.

The Chelsea striker controlled a lofted pass from midfield and held off two Malians to find Gervinho, who pushed the ball across the penalty area for Didier Ya Konan to net with a sweetly struck shot.

Played in a subdued, chilly atmosphere, the match rarely rose above the ordinary and Mali came closest to levelling in first-half stoppage time when Mamadou Semassa had a penalty blocked by Gerard Gnanhouan.

  

Presenters in sexism row hired by radio station

LONDON: The football broadcasters who left British TV station Sky Sports over a sexism row have been hired by a radio station.

London-based TalkSport announced on Tuesday that Richard Keys and Andy Gray will present a three-hour show every weekday from next Monday.

Keys says “this is the start of something new and exciting for Andy and myself”.

TalkSport was the outlet used by Keys last month to apologise for making derogatory comments about female assistant referee Sian Massey, West Ham executive Karren Brady and a former girlfriend of player-turned-commentator Jamie Redknapp.

Keys resigned, but Gray was fired after footage of him emerged making a suggestive comment towards a female colleague having already been caught mocking Massey. 

  

Ireland take the Speed out of Wales in Nations Cup opener

DUBLIN: The Republic of Ireland won the inaugural Nations Cup match as they beat Wales 3-0 at Lansdowne Road here on Tuesday.

What was meant to be a fresh era for Welsh football under Gary Speed saw his first game in charge end with another depressing defeat.

Neither side looked especially impressive in a dreary opening 45 minutes but after Darron Gibson broke the deadlock on the hour with his first international goal, the Republic pulled away with Damien Duff and substitute Keith Fahey also finding the back of the net.

Manchester United’s Gibson may never score a better international goal than the 20-yard strike that flew past Wales keeper Wayne Hennessey. Six minutes later, it was 2-0 to the hosts after Fulham favourite Duff turned in a cutback from eight yards.

Wales – who next month face old rivals England in a Euro 2012 qualifier in Cardiff – conceded a third goal eight minutes from time when Fahey powered in a 25-yard free-kick.

The Nations Cup is a four-team tournament also featuring Scotland and Northern Ireland, who played each other here yesterday.

The new tournament is on a league basis, with all six matches being staged at Lansdowne Road (the rest will take place in May) with the plan that all future editions will be held in one country on a rotational basis. 

  

Loew hints Ballack’s days with Germany may be over

BERLIN: Germany coach Joachim Loew on Tuesday hinted ex-captain Michael Ballack may no longer have a future in the national side after saying the veteran is not his first choice in midfield.

Ballack, 34, had been left out of the Germany squad who faced Italy in a friendly in Dortmund yesterday as he works his way back to fitness after four months out with injury.

Having missed last year’s World Cup after tearing ankle ligaments, Germany finished third in South Africa as Ballack’s defensive midfield role was filled by Real Madrid’s Sami Khedira alongside Bastian Schweinsteiger.

Loew gave the clearest indication so far that Ballack’s international career may be over by saying the ex-Chelsea star will need to win back his place for next month’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Kazakhstan and friendly with Australia.

“Sami Khedira and Bastian Schweinsteiger are my first choice in midfield,” said Loew, with Ballack having won 98 caps for his country. “We are not in a situation where we need to decide now if Michael Ballack will be back in the side in March.

“It all depends on him and whether he can produce the type of performances expected in the next few weeks.

“The quality of the player is what counts and whether he fits in with the style of football we are trying to play.” 

  

FIFA lifts threat to suspend Ukraine

ZURICH (AP): FIFA says it has lifted a threat to suspend Ukraine from world football but will continue monitoring the 2012 European Championship co-host to ensure politicians have stopped meddling in the national federation's business.

FIFA and UEFA intervened last month to protect the position of federation president Grygoriy Surkis after attempts to unseat him.

Surkis, a UEFA executive committee member, is unpopular in Ukraine for appearing to favor Dynamo Kiev, which his family controls.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said last week that football officials must solve their problems and not jeopardize their Euro 2012 role.

A suspension also would have prevented Shakhtar Donetsk from playing a Champions League match at Roma next week.

  

El Salvador dropped from CONCACAF Under-20s

NEW YORK (AP) - El Salvador has been excluded from the CONCACAF Under-20 Championship after using an ineligible player.

The regional governing body said Tuesday that El Salvador has forfeited its matches in the UNCAF Central American qualifying and will be replaced by Costa Rica.

Dustin Corea, who scored both goals in El Salvador's 2-1 aggregate playoff victory over Costa Rica, played for the United States at the 2009 CONCACAF Under-17 tournament and had not changed affiliation under FIFA's regulations.

CONCACAF concluded Salvador didn't intentionally field an ineligible player but still had to forfeit any matches he played in.

  

Sweden, Ukraine, win in Cyprus tournament

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) - First half goals from Tobias Hysen and Markus Berg gave Sweden a 2-0 win over Cyprus, while Ukraine beat Romania 4-2 in a penalty shootout in a friendly tournament on the east Mediterranean island on Tuesday.

The four-nation event, which continues on Wednesday, is being used by teams as preparation for next month's Euro 2012 qualifying matches.

Hysen put Sweden in front in the 26th minute when he headed in a curling Martin Olsson cross at Nicosia's GSP stadium. An unmarked Berg added the second on the stroke of halftime when he latched onto a through ball from Pontus Wernblom from 10 meters.

The Swedes could have added a third in the 64th minute.

A pass from midfield split the Cypriot defense and Hysen ran through, only for his pass across the goalmouth for Olsson to be intercepted by a Cyprus defender. Cyprus came close to pulling a goal back in the 75th minute when Andreas Avraam's shot from inside the box was kicked away by Sweden goalkeeper Johan Wiland.

The Cypriots missed another opportunity 10 minutes later when captain Ioannis Okkas dribbled into the box and passed to the unmarked George Efrem, who botched his shot. In Paralimni, two saves by veteran goalkeeper Oleksandr Shovkovskiy in the shootout secured victory for Euro 2012 co-hosts Ukraine after the match ended 2-2 in regulation time.

Ukraine took a 2-0 lead with goals from Yaroslav Rakitskiy, whose 25-meter free kick in the 23rd minute eluded Romanian goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon, and Artem Milevskiy, who finished off a one-two inside the box in the 32nd minute.

But Romania battled back and drew level before halftime thanks to goals from striker Dan Alexa.

The Ukrainians had an opportunity to score in the 45th when a Marco Devic drive rattled the crossbar.

Sweden and Ukraine meet in Nicosia in Wednesday's first-place match, while Cyprus takes on Romania in Paralimni.

  

Ghana beats Togo 4-1 in friendly

ANTWERP, Belgium (AP) - Ghana gave new coach Goran Stevanovic a winning start with a 4-1 victory over Togo in a friendly Tuesday.

Striker Dominic Adiyiah gave Ghana a 1-0 lead at halftime and after Togo equalized with a penalty three minutes into the second half, Jonathan Mensah, an own goal from Togo defender Akpakpo, and a late strike from Samuel Inkoom sealed the win.

Ghana is Africa's top team in the FIFA world rankings at 15 and reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup last year. It used the game to prepare for next month's African Cup of Nations qualifier against Congo.

"I am happy with the result but more pleased with the way my team played," coach Stevanovic told the Ghana federation web site. "Scoring four goals was a good result."

  

Ireland beats Wales 3-0 in Nations Cup opener

Ireland beats Wales 3-0 in Nations Cup opener Eds: APNewsNow. Corrects date of Speed's hiring in third paragraph. DUBLIN (AP) - Gary Speed's debut as Wales manager ended in a 3-0 loss to Ireland on Tuesday in the opening match of the four-team Nations Cup.

Darron Gibson, Damien Duff and Keith Fahey all scored in a dominant second-half for the Irish at Lansdowne Road.

Wales hired Speed in December to replace John Toshack.

Scotland and Northern Ireland, who are the other participants in the new British Isles football tournament, meet on Wednesday.

England, which plays Wales in a 2012 European Championship qualifier next month, declined to participate.

The Home Nations Championship, which featured Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England, was last contested in 1984.

  

Ya Konan scores as Ivory Coast beats Mali 1-0

VALENCE, France (AP) - Didier Drogba made a winning return to international football on Tuesday as he helped Ivory Coast to a 1-0 victory over Mali in a friendly.

With just three minutes played, Drogba chested down a long ball into the path of Lille striker Gervinho and his cross from the right was slammed high into the net by Didier Ya Konan.

Drogba, who had not played for his country since last year's World Cup, almost got his 46th international goal when he volleyed narrowly over from inside the penalty area in the 35th minute.

Drogba's Chelsea teammate Salomon Kalou almost made it 2-0 early in the second half when he weaved past three players but clipped his shot just over from 10 meters out.

Mali missed a penalty in the second half.

  

Motta gets green light to play for Italy

ROME: Inter Milan’s Brazilian midfielder Thiago Motta was on Monday given permission by FIFA to play for Italy allowing him to make his debut for them against Germany in today’s friendly.

The 28-year-old – whose ancestors emigrated from Italy to Brazil – had expressed his desire to play for Italy, where he has been based for the past three years first with Genoa and then with Inter.

Italy coach Cesare Prandelli had selected him in the squad for the Germany friendly and was delighted to be able to announce that FIFA had given the green light to Motta, who had represented junior Brazil teams but had not played for the senior side.

“The permission from FIFA for Thiago being able to play for the national side arrived this morning,” said Prandelli.

“I find it fantastic that players who aren’t born in this country are demanding to put on the azzurri shirt.

“I call up those who deserve to be selected, and I am rising above the tirades over the multi-ethnic make-up of the national team, because those type of attacks do no good, not only for the image of our sport, but also Italy’s.”

Prandelli, who replaced Marcello Lippi after the debacle of their World Cup defence last year, has already selected a non Italy-born player before, Italo-Argentinian Cristian Ledesma.

The most celebrated crossover was Argentinian-born wing Mauro Camoranesi, who was on the 2006 World Cup winning side then coached by Lippi.

  

Heart-to-heart chat with Capello does wonders for Walcott

LONDON: Theo Walcott admits a heart-to-heart chat with England coach Fabio Capello about his shock World Cup omission has played a key role in his fine form this season.

Walcott, who is expected to start today’s friendly against Denmark in Copenhagen, was stunned when he heard Capello had decided not to include him in England’s 23-man squad for last year’s World Cup.

But the Arsenal winger had to wait until he regained his place in the squad earlier this season before he could discover the reason why he was axed.

Walott is generally perceived as the shy, retiring type because he is so polite off the pitch, but the 21-year-old has a determined streak as well and he summoned up the courage to seek out the notoriously stern Capello for an explanation.

“I wanted to know why I didn’t go so I asked him after training on the pitch,” Walcott said.

“It was just about waiting for the right time. I kept my head down for a bit first. You don’t want to play bad and then ask the manager!

“I was happy with the answer. Those are the sort of things you want to keep between yourself and the manager but it has helped me so much.”

Capello has since confessed that he was wrong to leave out Walcott, so the Italian’s message to his winger may have been along similar lines.

Whatever he said has clearly helped Walcott move on from the World Cup snub and he is once again displaying the electric pace and cool finishing that persuaded Sven Goran Eriksson to take him to the 2006 World Cup as a raw teenager.

He added: “I didn’t dwell on it because that would kill me. I needed a mental break as well as a physical break. That has helped me this season.

“It’s nice to hear the manager say he was wrong but I didn’t point any fingers.

“I just want to prove people wrong and hopefully I am doing that. The psychological scar has gone. It is in the past and I just want to make sure it doesn’t happen again.” 

  

World Cup failures set to use friendlies to test young blood

PARIS: Half a season on from a World Cup where their respective teams largely failed to impress, England, Germany, Italy and France will use midweek friendlies to chart a course for happier times which they hope can materialise at Euro 2012.

England boss Fabio Capello, and German, Italian and French counterparts Joachim Loew, Laurent Blanc and Cesare Prandelli will be out to show that they are building solid foundations for the end of next season.

And the unavailability of several experienced names brings an opportunity to nurture young blood.

Europe’s traditional powerhouses had won nine World Cups between them before Spain put them in the shade last summer in breaking their duck in South Africa.

Capello’s charges, chastened in South Africa, now head to Copen-hagen to meet Denmark today.

And the Italian knows he has his work cut out as summer blues lingered into autumn with a 2-1 defeat against France at Wembley in October, which did little to restore English morale while suggesting France have recovered from their travails under Blanc’s predecessor Raymond Romenech.

With a Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales a month away, Capello will use the game against the Danes to see if young starlets such as Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere are ready to step up to the plate.

Wilshere is set to start alongside Chelsea veteran Frank Lampard with the latter’s habitual sidekick Steven Gerrard missing out after injuring his groin in Liverpool’s 1-0 win over Chelsea on Sunday.

With regular skipper Rio Ferdinand also injured Capello will likely choose Lampard or Wayne Rooney to wear the armband.

In attack, Rooney with partner Darren Bent, who has quickly found his feet with Villa since his big-money move from Sunderland.

Other attractive friendly dates include France meeting Brazil in a repeat of the 1998 World Cup final, while Germany go up against Italy, who suffered a debacle in South Africa, failing to get out of their group.

Germany at least finished third and will want to shine against the team that deprived them of a 2006 World Cup final on home soil in their most recent meeting

Prandelli brings back veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon less than a month after making his injury comeback to bring some experience to the side and has also called in Inter Milan’s Brazilian-born midfielder Thiago Motta.

Loew will have a pacy attack including wingers Mesut Ozil of Real Madrid and Bayern Munich’s Thomas Mueller but Bayern Munich striker Mario Gomez is missing with a knee injury and ex-captain Michael Ballack is also sidelined so Bayern defender Philipp Lahm is set to skipper the side.

France bombed as badly as Italy at the World Cup but under Blanc the seedlings of recovery are taking root as witnessed by the win over England while he has stressed his authority by refusing to bow to political pressure regarding bringing back – or not – ringleaders of the summer rebellion protesting the disciplining of Nicolas Anelka.

Brazil are also getting to grips with a new man at the helm after Mano Menezes replaced Dunga.

The auriverde lost 1-0 to arch-rivals Argentina in their last friendly outing – but France winger Florent Malouda insists the five-time world champions are “a point of reference at the global level.”

Menezes named a squad of Europe-based players and there was no place for livewire Santos forward Neymar, headlining the Under-20 South American championship in Peru.

Spain, without gastroenteritis-stricken Cesc Fabregas, meanwhile welcome Colombia, while their conquered World Cup final rivals Holland host Austria and Argentina take on Portugal in Geneva. 

International Friendlies

TODAY

DENMARK vs ENGLAND

(Live on SuperSport, 3.10am tomorrow)

HOLLAND vs AUSTRIA

POLAND vs NORWAY

GERMANY vs ITALY

ARGENTINA vs PORTUGAL

FRANCE vs BRAZIL

(Live on SuperSport2, 3.55am tomorrow)

SPAIN vs COLOMBIA

(Live on SuperSport3, 4.25am tomorrow)

ANDORRA vs MOLDOVA

ARMENIA vs GEORGIA

BELARUS vs KAZAKHSTAN

GREECE vs CANADA

IRAN vs RUSSIA

LATVIA vs BOLIVIA

TURKEY vs SOUTH KOREA

CROATIA vs CZECH REP

AZERBAIJAN vs HUNGARY

EGYPT vs USA

ISRAEL vs SERBIA

ALBANIA vs SLOVENIA

ESTONIA vs BULGARIA

LUXEMBOURG vs SLOVAKIA

BELGIUM vs FINLAND

MALTA vs SWITZERLAND

  

Malaysia can make it to 2015 Asian Cup Finals, says coach

PETALING JAYA: Coach K. Rajagopal believes the national team will be ready to join the big boys of Asian football in four years’ time.

If everything goes according to plan, he expects Malaysia to qualify for the 2015 Asian Cup Finals in Australia.

Having tasted success with the Under-23 boys in the SEA Games in Vientiane (2009) and with the national team in the Suzuki Cup Asean Football Federation (AFF) Championships last year, Rajagopal feels that Malaysia can qualify on merit for Asia’s premier competition in 2015.

“It is a long process but I have confidence in these youngsters, who can be moulded into a bunch of fine players in years to come. I have seen junior players under me move up the ranks and getting into the national Under-19, Under-23 and senior squads,” said Rajagopal.

He added that the present national team, comprising mostly players from the victorious Laos SEA Games squad, would be matured enough to lead an assault for the Asian Cup in 2015.

“There is good pool of players who have come up from the Harimau Muda squad. They are skilful and well-built. In four years’ time, they will be around 26-27 years old and will be well-equipped for Asian level competition,” said Rajagopal, whose national team will play their first international match – since their Suzuki Cup success – against Hong Kong in a friendly at the Shah Alam Stadium today (8.45pm).

The national team are preparing for the pre-World Cup (qualifiers) scheduled for June.

Rajagopal has called up the cream of the crop from the Suzuki Cup squad as well as two players returning from long-term injuries – centreback Mohd Aidil Zafuan Abdul Razak and striker Ahmad Fakri Saarani.

Hotshot Mohd Safee Sali, who will be leaving to join Pelita Jaya FC (PJFC) in the Indonesian Super League (ISL) next month, is expected to start upfront with either Fakri or Mohd Ashaari Shamsuddin.

Khairul Fahmi Che Mat is likely to start in goal while Harimau Muda centrebacks – Muslim Ahmad and Mohd Fadhli Shas, who were outstanding in the Suzuki Cup – should get the nod in the starting line-up.

Safiq Rahim, Mohd Amirulhadi Zainal, S. Kunalan and Baddrol Bakhtiar should start in midfield.

Tickets for the friendly, priced at RM20, can be purchased at Wisma FAM in Kelana Jaya from 9am to 12 noon and at the Shah Alam Stadium from 4pm onwards.