| Russia's Roman Pavlyuchenko misses qualifiers with ankle injury • Spurs striker was substituted at half-time against Aston Villa• Zenit St Petersburg's Alexander Bukharov set to replace himTottenham's Roman Pavlyuchenko will miss the Euro 2012 qualifiers against Ireland and Macedonia with an ankle injury, Russia's coach, Dick Advocaat, has confirmed. "Last night we made a decision that Pavlyuchenko will not travel with the squad to Dublin and Skopje," he said.Advocaat said he would not risk Pavlyuchenko, who was substituted at half-time in Tottenham's win over Aston Villa on Saturday, in Friday's Group B qualifier in Dublin or in Macedonia next Tuesday.The Zenit St Petersburg forward Alexander Bukharov will be called up.RussiaTottenham HotspurEuro 2012guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Nigel de Jong in talks over new Manchester City deal despite being dropped by Holland Nigel de Jong set to continue talks over new Manchester City contract after being dropped by Holland. telegraph.co.uk |
Portsmouth still have top-flight quality Amid the riot vans outside the stadium and, bizarrely, Sulaiman al-Fahim in the away end, Portsmouth proved they can go upWhat a difference between Portsmouth's last two trips to London. Five weeks ago last night Pompey were thumped 4-1 at Crystal Palace and were bottom of the Championship. They lost their next two games, too, and looked set for a second successive relegation. Now, judging by the mood of their noisy fans and a club official who said before kick-off "this squad is good enough for the top six", they will be disappointed if they don't make the play-offs. A close look at their team suggests they might make it, too.The deserved 1-0 win over Millwall means it's five games unbeaten, four of them victories, and 15 goals scored in that run. The new hero is Liam Lawrence, who has scored four of those 15, all penalties. His latest gained his team their first league away win, and earned him the second biggest cheer of the night, after a goal celebration more suited to extra time in an FA Cup semi-final, when he milked the applause from 1170 away fans at the end of the game.It was an unusual night out. As news of Margaret Thatcher's confinement in hospital was announced, the pre-match sight of a huge police presence at London Bridge brought back memories of her "I hate football" days in the 1980s. There were scores of police outside the Barrowboy and Banker pub outside the station, and riot vans parked all the way down the road. There were police everywhere all around the stadium — and a raucous atmosphere inside.Among the away fans, bizarrely, sat Sulaiman al-Fahim, the Walter Mitty character who played a big part in Portsmouth's financial troubles. What the Dubai property dealer made of it is anybody's guess, because it wasn't exactly a directors' box atmosphere.Lawrence, meanwhile, was involved in a farcical incident just before half-time when he argued with two ballboys who kicked the ball over his head and refused to hand it to him for a corner.Millwall's players gave their supporters very little encouragement. They were poor all night, with a couple of exceptions. They defended quite well and Chris Hackett got stuck in admirably, even decking the pugnacious Michael Brown in the first half. But they could never quite match their opponents and a look at the line-ups gave a clue.Millwall's starting line-up shows – and I'm sure you will correct me if I am wrong — only the two Darrens, Carter and Ward, have played a few games in the Premier League. Every single one of the Portsmouth starting XI had experience of the top level, which is surprising given there was supposed to be such a clear-out.The squad is thin and any injuries will be hard to cope with — so they will hope Ricardo Rocha, who limped off early, will recover quickly. But with so many class players to call on, even if they are second class by Premier League standards — most notably Ibrahima Sonko, who had a few wobbles again — they must have a chance of keeping the run going.They could do with a specialist forwards coach, though, to teach David Nugent how to shoot with his left foot. Twice he was clear on goal but tried to switch the ball to his right foot for the shot, and wasted the chance. The other David up front, Kitson, looked far better, and could turn out to be an inspired signing.The next midweek game against London opponents is three weeks away, when QPR visit Fratton. That will be a better time to judge if the fans' optimism is well placed.PortsmouthBrian Oliverguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Lyon v Benfica: live Follow live commentary of the Champions League Group B match between Lyon and Benfica at Stade de Gerland on Wednesday Oct 20 2010, kick-off 19.45 BST. telegraph.co.uk |
In the Arena: A Surge in Artificial Turf The professional sport that first embraced artificial turf - Major League Baseball in North America - has now come close to eliminating it. But soccer now appears to be headed in the opposite direction, embracing it. feeds.nytimes.com |