UK Roundup

Klinsmann says England should call Sheringham

LONDON (Reuters) -- Former German international Juergen Klinsmann believes 36-year-old Teddy Sheringham should still be playing for England and could even help them win the next World Cup.

Klinsmann is back in town to play for Tottenham on Thursday in a benefit game against American team D.C. United to raise money for former Spurs heroes (U.S. TV: Fox Sports World at 2:45 p.m. ET).

Klinsmann, who won the World Cup with Germany in 1990, said on Wednesday: "I spent 90 minutes on the training ground with Teddy and he looks like he is 21 again.

"I would expect to see him in Portugal 2004 and would love to see him in the World Cup in Germany in 2006."

Sheringham said a month ago he still had hopes of adding to his 51 England caps. He made four appearances as a substitute at the World Cup this year but has not featured since.

Klinsmann said: "Teddy is a special player, unlike any other of his generation. He could fit into any team on the continent or play at the top in Italy because of his style and certainly I can see him playing at the highest level for a few more years.

"He's a very smart player with great vision and awareness of his team mates and can play great passes. No one else is like that in England."

Klinsmann retired after his second stint at Spurs in 1998 and moved to America following that year's World Cup.

He insists he has no regrets about retiring when he did, adding: "It was the right time to stop because I wanted to spend more time with my young family.

"But this match is for a great cause and it will give me great pleasure to play again at White Hart Lane where I have had so many great memories."

Klinsmann will play in a team of former Spurs greats including Glenn Hoddle, Chris Waddle, David Ginola and Paul Gascoigne. Gascoigne had trials with D.C. United earlier this year.

Leicester players agree to wage deferral

LONDON (Reuters) -- Leicester City players have agreed to defer a percentage of their wages to help the first division club through its financial crisis, the Professional Footballers Association said on Wednesday.

Leicester, who were relegated from the premier league at the end of last season, were facing the threat of going into administration if no agreement could be reached.

"An amicable solution has been reached between the players and the club," PFA deputy chief executive Mick McGuire told the association's Web site.

"The players have always been very co-operative and they have agreed to defer a small proportion of their salary to assist the club throughout the remainder of this season," he said.

Details of how much of their wages players would defer or the timescale involved were not immediately available.

"This should help to provide the impetus towards a financial restructuring of the club. The immense contribution of the players and the PFA will materially assist the club," Leicester chairman Martin George told the club's Web site.

"In return we will endeavor to keep the squad of players and the management team together for the remainder of the season to give us the best chance of achieving promotion, which is the single goal everybody associated with the club is striving to achieve," he added.

Players relieved

Leicester, second in division one and hoping for a swift return to the top flight, have been hit by the rapid fall in media income that accompanied their relegation while still paying premier league wages.

The club has also been hurt by the collapse of pay-TV firm ITV Digital earlier this year, which left many clubs outside the premier league with a shortfall in income.

The timing could not have been worse for the club which has just opened a 35 million pound ($54.4 million) stadium, for which they took out a 28 million pound ($43.5 million) loan.

Leicester captain Matt Elliott said the players were relieved the issue had been resolved.

"Contrary to reports both the players and the club have always been very determined to show a willingness to work together towards a resolution of this matter.

"The subject is now closed as far as the players are concerned and we can all now concentrate on our main aim which is promotion," he said.

Leicester, who suspended their shares last week, said on Tuesday they were in advanced negotiations over a financial restructuring and were looking to raise further funds from shareholders.

Tofting banned from playing for Bolton

BOLTON, England (AP) -- Bolton's Danish midfielder, Stig Tofting, is ineligible to play for the club until after any appeal against his four-month prison sentence for assault is decided.

Tofting, 33, was convicted Tuesday in Copenhagen of assaulting two restaurant employees in the Danish capital on June 23. He was on a night out with fellow World Cup squad members after their return from South Korea and Japan.

Tofting has not indicated yet if he will appeal.

Bolton said in a statement that Tofting will be fined two weeks' wages and suspended until further notice.

"The club wishes to make it clear that in no way does it condone the actions of Stig Tofting or any employee whose behavior, whether it be whilst on business or outside working hours, is of the nature that Stig Tofting was convicted for yesterday," the Bolton statement said.

"Bolton have supported Mr. Tofting prior to yesterday's conviction and in light of the pending appeal will now be reviewing their position."

The club said Tofting would be further disciplined, but did not give details.

"Until the appeal action is resolved, in the next two weeks, Mr. Tofting will not take part in any Premiership matches," it said.

Tofting joined Bolton in February from German club Hamburg.

In 1999, he as given a suspended 20 day prison sentence for assaulting a fan who insulted him because he then was playing for the German club Duisburg.

The popular player, who is known for his temperament and for sporting a "No Regret" tattoo across his chest, announced his retirement from the national team after Denmark was knocked out in the second round of the World Cup.

Tofting joined the Danish squad in 1993 and has 41 caps.

Lauren believes Arsenal can wrest Cup from Real

MADRID (Reuters) -- Arsenal defender Lauren believes that the English premier league side are capable of wresting the European Cup from reigning champions Real Madrid.

"Real may have the best team in the world but that doesn't mean they are unbeatable," the Cameroon international, who joined Arsenal from Spanish club Real Mallorca, told Spanish sports daily Marca on Wednesday.

"The key against a team like Real is to deprive them of the ball for as long as possible, because they suffer when they don't have it.

"Given our pace and if we can control the ball we are capable of beating them."

Lauren added that the presence of so many attack-minded players like Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo and Raul made Real vulnerable in defence.

"In my opinion Arsenal are a more solid and balanced team than Real Madrid and that could work to our advantage if we did meet them say in the final.

"We are convinced that this year is going to be our chance to do something big in Europe."

The English side, who did the league and cup double last season, are top of the premier league and lead their Champions League group with three wins from three games.

Real also top their group with seven points from three matches and lie in third place in the Spanish first division.

Blair calls for firm action on racist fans

LONDON (Reuters) -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair urged Slovakia's football association on Wednesday to respond firmly to racist taunts yelled at England's black players by Slovak fans at the weekend.

Asked in parliament about the racist abuse from part of the Slovak crowd aimed at England players Ashley Cole and Emile Heskey, Blair said authorities should take firm action in any country "where this kind of racism rears its head."

"The scenes in Slovakia were disgraceful. I think people understand that," Blair said. "And I hope that the authorities there take the appropriate action against those responsible."

Slovak Football Association President Frantisek Laurinec apologized to English FA chairman Geoff Thompson on Monday, saying the racist abuse at Saturday's Euro 2004 qualifier match in Bratislava was not representative of Slovak fans as a whole.

Wiping out racism in soccer has risen to the top of the agenda of the sport's governing body in Europe, UEFA, after black players have been the target of abuse in recent matches, particularly in ex-communist Europe.

Cole said that even the stadium's stretcher bearers were abusive during the Group Seven match which England won 2-1.

England face unsung Macedonia later on Wednesday in their second qualifying match.

Racism called 'smoke screen' to excuse English behavior

LONDON (AP) -- Racist chanting by Slovak fans is being used as a "smoke screen" to cover up the violent behavior by English fans at last weekend's Euro 2004 qualifier in Bratislava, an anti-hooligan police unit said Wednesday.

Mark Steels, a spokesman for the National Criminal Intelligence Service, disputed claims by Football Association spokesman Paul Newman that there was a "direct connection" between racist chants against black English players and fighting involving England fans.

"The problem was not caused by racist chanting," Steels said. "Racism is a very nasty problem and needs to be dealt with, but that's not the same as using it as a smoke screen to cover up the antics of some of the those who accompany England abroad."

Two England fans were shot by security guards outside a nightclub in Bratislava on the eve of the match. English fans also wrecked a pub the day before the match in nearby Prague.

During the game, which England won 2-1, baton wielding police attacked English fans who were throwing objects and climbing a barrier separating Slovak and English supporters.

"They [fans] effectively destroyed a lap-dancing club the night before in Prague," Steels said. "That's got nothing to do with racism."

"If you're saying the small minority of front-line yobs who support the team are suddenly sensitive to racist chanting, I find that extraordinary."

Steels said the problem-free World Cup in Japan and South Korea was a "false dawn" attributed to the high cost of travel and the friendly attitude of the hosts.

"There was a great naivete in thinking that with the World Cup we'd turned the corner," he said. "There are an awful lot of people out there who the Home Office and the FA really don't want to see following England around."

The racism issue was raised Wednesday in Parliament, where Prime Minister Tony Blair condemned the "disgraceful" treatment of England players in Slovakia.

"We must make sure that this does not come back into the game here in our own country but also I hope the football authorities do take very firm action in respect of any country where this type of racism rears its head," he said.

"The scenes in Slovakia were disgraceful and I hope the authorities there take the appropriate action against those responsible."

Giggs is world's greatest left winger, says Capello

ROME (Reuters) -- Manchester United's Welsh international Ryan Giggs has been the best left winger in the world for the last five years, according to AS Roma coach Fabio Capello.

Capello made his comments ahead of Italy's Euro 2004 qualifier against Wales at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Wednesday.

"Ryan Giggs is the greatest outside left player there has been in world football during the past five years," Capello was quoted as saying in sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"He's the kind of player who can switch the direction of attack at any moment and that's a quality that every coach values a lot."

"On one hand he has the opportunity to play in one of the greatest clubs in the world, Manchester United," he added.

"On the other -- unfortunately for him -- his national side is not so strong and it's probably this that stops him winning big prizes like the European player of the year award -- a trophy he amply deserves for all he's done in the last few seasons."

After Saturday's disappointing 1-1 draw with Yugoslavia, Italy are keen get all three points on Wednesday to strengthen their position at the top of group nine.

Giggs has been identified as Wales's main threat by the Italian media, who have debated various methods of stopping him.

Capello suggested using Roma's pacey defender Christian Panucci, who after a slow start this season has started to find the form that made him one of the best players in Serie A last year.

"Panucci has the characteristics adapted to avoid being surprised by the Welshman," he said.

"Apart from anything else, Christian's physical condition is improving, as he demonstrated in the last Serie A match against Udinese and in the national team game against Yugoslavia."

If Italy lose against Wales, the cries for the resignation of national coach Giovanni Trapattoni will be deafening. After the game against Yugoslavia some newspapers called for the return of his predecessor, Dino Zoff.

In a separate interview in sports daily Corriere dello Sport on Wednesday, Capello defended Trapattoni.

"It doesn't depend on the coach," he said.

When asked about his own future, he denied being interested in Trapattoni's job.

"I don't feel the urge," he said. "To take on a job I have to feel enthusiasm and the desire to do it."

"I have a contract for another two years, until 2005 [at Roma], and I'm happy for the opportunity that gives me," he added.

"If I wanted to have another experience [as a coach], I'd go abroad: England or Germany, seeing that I've already worked in Spain. It would be a great stimulus."

Scotland must play more to improve, says Dailly

EDINGBURGH (Reuters) -- Scotland must play as many games as possible over the next year to resurrect their standing in international football, says captain Christian Dailly.

Scotland have enjoyed back-to-back wins against Iceland in Saturday's Euro 2004 qualifier and Canada in a friendly on Tuesday but the West Ham United defender believes the rebuilding work under German manager Berti Vogts is far from complete.

Before those victories, Scotland had lost five successive games -- their worst ever sequence of defeats -- and suffered the ignominy of a 2-2 draw against the Faroe Islands in their opening qualifier.

"I think we're starting to find our shape and I know from playing in the under-21s that the more you stay together, the more used to each other you become," Dailly told reporters.

"I think every game we can possibly play we've got to do it to improve. We're so privileged to be playing for our country and we want to be playing as many games as we can.

"I played in our under-21 side for 20 or 25 games in the same team and we were successful and I think it's the same here. The more we're together as team, the better we're going to get."

Dailly, who scored in the win over Iceland in Reykjavik, was handed the captain's armband for the game against Canada due to an injury to Celtic midfielder Paul Lambert.

The 28-year-old was criticized for the goals Scotland lost in the Faroe Islands but was an important factor in Scotland's two wins.

"We're trying to win games for Scotland and hopefully the wins have given the whole country a lift," he said. "All the boys have worked so hard to turn it around and we feel like we're getting there now."

Scotland are due to play a friendly match in Portugal next month before resuming their qualifying campaign against Iceland in March.

The Scots lead Group Five, which also includes Germany and Lithuania, with four points from their opening two matches.

 

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.