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World Cup roundup Hierro excited to play in front of home fans
MADRID (Reuters) -- Real Madrid skipper Fernando Hierro will finally get the chance to play international football at his home ground on Saturday, when Spain takes on Israel in a World Cup qualifier. Spain will be turning out at the Bernabeu for the first time since 1988, when they hosted Scotland. Hierro made his debut for Spain the following year in a 1-0 win over Poland in La Coruna, shortly after joining Real Madrid from Valladolid. "It will be a special game for me," he said after training for the group seven tie with Jose Antonio Camacho's squad. "Now we have to make sure that the fans come and fill stadium for what could be a great game. "We need the people of Madrid to come and support us." Hierro won the last of his 73 caps against Slovenia at Euro 2000, missing the extraordinary 4-3 win over Yugoslavia in the group decider and the subsequent 2-1 defeat to France in the quarter-finals with a thigh injury. The 32-year-old was also absent for a 4-1 friendly defeat to Germany and Spain's hard-won 2-1 victory over Bosnia in their opening World Cup qualifier. Camacho has welcomed Hierro's return, saying this week: "For his personal and footballing qualities, Hierro will lead any side he's in." Hierro himself was at pains to shrug off the tag of team leader, saying: "That's not a word I like. "I'm one of those people who believe there should be 11 players out there leading the team. "The fact that I've won more caps than anyone else in this squad is important, though. It benefits both me personally and the team but it's a different thing from being a 'leader.'"
Russian coach upset about postponementMOSCOW (Reuters) -- Russia coach Oleg Romantsev said on Wednesday he was unhappy about the postponement of Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Yugoslavia. World soccer's governing body FIFA said on Tuesday that due to the political situation in Yugoslavia, where the opposition is in a stand-off with President Slobodan Milosevic, international matches in Belgrade would be postponed until further notice. "Apart from Belgrade, where we had not refused to play, the match could have been in Moscow or on a neutral pitch," Romantsev was quoted by Russian newspapers as saying. "But by postponing the game, soccer officials have presented us with a fait accompli, bringing us down to the level of puppets." FIFA has not named a new date for the Russia tie, but Russian officials have said it is likely to be April 25. They rejected the option of playing it on November 15 as it was too close to the end of the Russian season. Romantsev said the April 2001 fixture would also be bad for Russia as foreign clubs might be reluctant to release their players at the end of their league seasons. "They simply did not take our opinion into consideration -- neither FIFA, the Yugoslavs nor the RSU [Russian Soccer Union]," he said.
Turkish midfielder ruled outISTANBUL (Reuters) -- Turkey left for a World Cup qualifier against Sweden on Wednesday missing key midfielder Umit Davala and with striker Hakan Sukur suffering from stomach problems. State-run Anatolian news agency said the Inter Milan player had reported to an Istanbul hospital on Tuesday evening suffering from a stomach bug. He was treated and rejoined the squad on Wednesday as it flew to Sweden for the group four match on Saturday. Newspapers said Davala's place had been taken by Mert Korkmaz of Gaziantepspor, the brother of Galatasaray and international defender Bulent.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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