Celtic stretches lead in Scotland

GLASGOW, Scotland (AP): Celtic beat 10-man Aberdeen 3-0 away on Tuesday to move provisionally eight points clear of Glasgow rival Rangers at the top of the Scottish Premier League.

Andrew Considine was sent off for Aberdeen in the second minute and although Anthony Stokes missed the resulting penalty, Gary Hooper capitalized by putting Celtic ahead in the 12th.

Mark Wilson and Stokes, making amends, completed the win for the visitors. Rangers, which plays third-place Hearts on Wednesday, has three games in hand over Celtic.

In the other game on Tuesday, St. Johnstone beat bottom club Hamilton 2-0.

  

Rooney brace keeps Man United 5 points clear

LONDON (AP): A brace from Wayne Rooney in a 3-1 victory over Aston Villa kept Manchester United five points clear at the top of the Premier League, but Arsenal and Chelsea stayed in touch with the unbeaten leaders with come-from-behind victories on Tuesday.

Rooney scored with virtually the first and last kicks of the first half at Old Trafford to help United to a convincing win that equaled the club's record of 29 straight league matches without defeat.

Second-place Arsenal came from behind to beat Everton 2-1 at home thanks to goals by Andrey Arshavin and Laurent Koscielny.

Chelsea produced an attacking masterclass in the absence of new record signing Fernando Torres to beat Sunderland 4-2 away, moving one point adrift of third-place Manchester City, which will have played a game more after it visits Birmingham on Wednesday.

Wigan remained in the relegation zone after being held 2-2 by West Bromwich Albion in Tuesday's other game.

It was only Rooney's fourth and fifth league goals in a disappointing season for the England striker, who has struggled to reproduce the form of last season.

"Goals always help strikers," United manager Alex Ferguson said of Rooney. "He's always had a great appetite to play ... and he's got his rewards eventually."

Rooney latched onto United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar's long clearance to control beautifully and strike a 20-yard shot into the net to open the scoring after just 48 seconds.

His second came just before halftime, slotting home from eight meters after Nani had crossed the ball across the penalty area.

England striker Darren Bent pulled a goal back for Villa in the 58th, his second since joining the midtable club from Sunderland this month, but Serbia ceter back Nemanja Vidic regained United's two-goal cushion with a powerful volley five minutes later.

French center back Koscielny completed Arsenal's comeback at Emirates Stadium, heading in the winner in the 76th minute to keep the Gunners firmly in the title race.

Arshavin had equalized in the 70th, eight minutes after coming on as a substitute for Tomas Rosicky, to cancel out a contentious opener scored by Everton striker Louis Saha.

Replays showed Saha was offside when he ran onto a pass from Seamus Coleman that came off Koscielny before reaching the France striker.

"We were not sharp until Everton scored," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. "It was more a victory of a team with a fantastic spirit and a never-say-die attitude. I'm very happy because this is maybe the aspect of the team that has been questioned the most."

Torres was unable to play for Chelsea as he wasn't registered in time following his British-record 50 million pounds ($81 million) move to the London club from Liverpool on Monday.

But the defending champions didn't struggle for goals without the Spain striker at the Stadium of Light, with Frank Lampard's penalty and Salomon Kalou's tidy finish overturning a fourth-minute lead given to Sunderland by Phil Bardsley.

Kieran Richardson's free kick in the 26th brought the home side level but second-half goals by John Terry and Nicolas Anelka saw Chelsea home.

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti said his side's return to form could have come too late to retain the title.

"If Manchester United continue their run, it's difficult to close the gap," said Ancelotti, after Chelsea's third win in a row.

Substitute Marc-Antoine Fortune scored West Brom's equalizer against Wigan in the 79th minute, preventing the visitors climbing out of the bottom three.

Peter Odemwingie put West Brom ahead but Charles N'Zogbia's deflected free kick made it 1-1 and Ben Watson's hopeful cross into the box found the corner to give Wigan the lead.

  

Barca, Madrid on verge of making Copa de Rey final

MADRID (AP): Barcelona and Real Madrid are on the verge of meeting in the Copa del Rey final.

Both teams head into the return leg of the semifinals holding the advantage. Record 25-time champion Barcelona leads Almeria 5-0 before Wednesday's game, and Madrid won 1-0 at defending champion Sevilla.

The domestic cup competition could be Madrid coach Jose Mourinho's only chance to win silverware this season. In the league, Barcelona leads Madrid by seven points.

Madrid, which has won all 16 games played at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, hasn't won any trophy for two-plus seasons. It won its 17th - and last - Copa del Rey in 1993.

The final is scheduled for April 20 - four days after the pair meet in the league.

  

Tickets sold out for Ronaldinho's debut

SAO PAULO (AP): All 37,000 tickets available for Ronaldinho's debut with Flamengo on his return to Brazilian football have been sold.

It took only two days for fans to buy all the tickets for Flamengo's match on Wednesday, Ronaldinho's first since transferring from AC Milan to the popular Brazilian club earlier this year.

Flamengo will face Macae in the Guanabara Cup, the first stage of the Rio de Janeiro state championship.

Ronaldinho is not expected to play the entire game at Engenhao stadium, however, as team trainers say he is still not in the best physical condition.

The two-time world player of the year is returning to Brazilian football after 10 years in European football.

  

Scotland picks uncapped duo for Northern Ireland

GLASGOW, Scotland (AP): Scotland called up Blackburn defender Grant Hanley and Aberdeen striker Chris Maguire for the first time Tuesday for next week's international against Northern Ireland.

"Grant is a young lad who has impressed in the short time he has been involved in the Premier League matches," Scotland coach Craig Levein said. "I've watched him four times and he has all the attributes to be a top-class center back."

Levein also picked Leeds winger Robert Snodgrass in the 22-man squad for his team's first match in the Nations Cup - which is played over four months in Dublin and also features Wales and Ireland.

Levein added that he had left out Dundee United striker David Goodwillie because he was charged by police last month over a sexual attack on a woman.

"It's an awkward situation to be placed in," Levein said. "He has a cloud hanging over his head just now. I thought long and hard about it and I believe I've made the right decision."

Scotland plays Northern Ireland on Wednesday, a day after host nation Ireland hosts Wales in Tuesday's tournament opener.

Scotland squad:

Goalkeepers: Cameron Bell (Kilmarnock), Craig Gordon (Sunderland), Allan McGregor (Rangers).

Defenders: Phil Bardsley (Sunderland), Christophe Berra (Wolves), Gary Caldwell (Wigan), Grant Hanley (Blackburn), Alan Hutton (Tottenham), Danny Wilson (Liverpool), Mark Wilson (Celtic).

Midfielders: Charlie Adam (Blackpool), Barry Bannan (Aston Villa), Scott Brown (Celtic), Kris Commons (Celtic), Graham Dorrans (West Bromwich Albion), Darren Fletcher (Manchester United), Lee McCulloch (Rangers), James Morrison (West Bromwich Albion).

Forwards: Chris Maguire (Aberdeen), Kenny Miller (Bursaspor), Steven Naismith (Rangers), Robert Snodgrass (Leeds).

  

Woodgate close to Spurs return after 14 months out

LONDON (AP): Jonathan Woodgate could play for Tottenham for the first time since November 2009 after being picked in the squad for Wednesday's Premier League match against Blackburn.

After 14 months out with a career-threatening groin injury, the 30-year-old Woodgate could return in central defense because Tottenham captain Ledley King needs to have surgery on a groin problem that has kept him out since October.

Spurs manager Harry Redknapp says King is "nowhere near ready to play." Defenders Younes Kaboul and William Gallas are injured and Michael Dawson is suspended.

Woodgate was omitted from Tottenham's Premier League squad at the start of the season because of his persistent injuries.

His last appearance was in a 9-1 win over Wigan.

  

Chelsea shifts direction with signing of Torres

LONDON (AP): Fernando Torres' arrival at Chelsea in the biggest move of a record-breaking January transfer window for the Premier League heralds a change in direction by the Blues in more ways than one.

English clubs spent a huge 225 million pounds ($362 million) in a month, but only because Chelsea laid out more than 70 million pounds ($112 million) to emphatically end its loudly trumpeted but short-lived intention to rely upon homegrown players.

And having spent 50 million pounds just ($80 million) on Torres, the Blues will have to adapt their tactics to play to the strengths of a forward who is very different to regular strikers Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka.

Drogba has been arguably the Premier League's most complete striker over recent seasons and the lone spearhead of Chelsea's attack, but he will have to learn to play with a partner to avoid being displaced by a player who lacks his physical presence but compensates with greater speed.

Anyway, the Ivory Coast veteran's loss of form following a bout of malaria is one of the reasons Chelsea needed a new striker.

Chelsea's 42 goals this season make it the third-highest scoring team in the Premier League, but 19 of those goals came from its first five matches.

Even if manager Carlo Ancelotti keeps Florent Malouda and Nicolas Anelka playing wide in support of a lone striker, Torres' selection ahead of Drogba would require the midfield to create a more regular supply of balls along the ground. Torres is a skilled header of the ball but is not as adept at challenging burly defenders in the air as Drogba is when fit.

"After this, there are no more steps forward," Torres said. "This is the top level. The target for every footballer is to try and play at one of the top-level clubs in the world and I can do it now."

With 81 goals in 142 games for Liverpool and the only goal in Spain's 2008 European Championship win over Germany, Torres is the proven topflight scorer Chelsea needed to re-ignite its flagging attempt to retain the Premier League and FA Cup titles it cruised to last season.

"This is a very significant day for Chelsea, capturing one of the best players in the world with his peak years ahead of him," Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck said. "We have long admired the talents of a player who is a proven goalscorer in English football and Fernando's arrival is a sign of our continuing high ambitions."

Argentina striker Carlos Tevez was widely recognized as the most expensive player in English football until Monday.

Manchester City has never confirmed the cost of his 2009 transfer, which has since been reported as costing about 47 million pounds. With a contract at Liverpool that ran until 2013, Chelsea's billionaire owner Roman Abramovich was forced to beat that to get Torres.

David Luiz's signing from Benfica should also help improve an uncharacteristically porous defense, but Chelsea's spree helped disguise the fact that - despite smashing the 2008 record for 175 million pounds (then $347 million) spent in a single January window - most Premier League clubs were more parsimonious than usual.

According to accountancy firm Deloitte, only Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Aston Villa spent more than 10 million pounds ($16 million), and the quartet's spending on six players totaled 80 percent of the overall outlay.

Liverpool's cash came from the sale of Torres and Ryan Babel and went on strikers Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez, Manchester City spent big on Edin Dzeko thanks to the largesse of its Abu Dhabi owners, and Villa owner Randy Lerner was apparently spooked by the prospect of relegation into paying about 20 million pounds ($32 million) for Darren Bent.

"Whilst Premier League club revenues have never been higher, we were surprised to see more than 200 million pounds spent in a January window for the first time, particularly after only around 30 million pounds was spent in January last year," said Dan Jones, partner in Deloitte's Sports Business Group. "This was a particularly polarized window, with only a few clubs flexing their financial muscles on what was a deafening final day of an otherwise quiet window."