Divers dominate
It’s ‘Time’ for Messi
NATIONAL divers Leong Mun Yee (pic) and Traisy Vivien Tukiet claim Sea Games 10m platform synchronised gold medal
BARCELONA superstar Lionel Messi among 32 nominated for Time magazine’s Person-of-theYear
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Tuesday 15 November, 2011
LONDON: FOOTBALL
local
Kelvin incline
NATIONAL midfielder Kelvinder Singh will miss the Champions Challenge tournament in South Africa
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President suspended NO place for ousted Negri Sembilan Lawn Tennis Association president Mohd Akhbar Baba in national body
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presstalk
Danish cookie
UNITED set sights on Denmark and Ajax sensation Christian Eriksen (pic) to fill Paul Scholes’ shoes
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football
Humble Gunslinger
URUGUAY striker Luis Suarez (pic) plays down any comparisons with Argentina wizard Lionel Messi
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Mum’s the word Terry gagged by FA over racism allegations
JOHN TERRY was gagged by the Football Association (FA) yesterday to prevent the England captain answering any questions about allegations he racially abused QPR defender Anton Ferdinand in a recent Premier League match. The FA and London’s Metropolitan Police are investigating the incident. Terry, who has denied the claims, was asked to speak about the matter yesterday at a Press conference ahead of a friendly against Sweden, but the questions were blocked by a member of the FA’s media team. Terry would only speak about his current mood, saying: “I’m in a great state of mind and focused on training. From my point of view, nothing’s changed at all.” England skipper Terry was rested from last weekend’s 1-0 friendly win over Spain, although manager Fabio Capello insisted this had nothing to do with the racism allegations. Terry, due to play against Sweden at Wembley tomorrow, said: “I think the players have showed we’re united no matter what and put in a very good performance against Spain.” Midfielder Frank Lampard, a Chelsea teammate of Terry,
LIP sin: Terry alleged to have abused Ferdinand in a recent Premier League match — AFP photo
captained England on Saturday. The central defender said it was always possible he could be dropped. “I don’t feel undroppable. I’ve never thought that with England or Chelsea,” said Terry. “If my form’s not good enough the manager (Capello) is big enough to drop anyone, as we’ve seen. “Every game we are playing for our places,” the 30-yearold added.
“I’m in a great state of mind and focused on training. From my point of view, nothing’s changed at all.” Meanwhile, Capello insisted he had no qualms about Terry’s mood ahead of the Sweden match. “He’s here. He will be with us. He will be the captain,” Capello said. The Italian added he planned to make wholesale changes to his side for the Sweden match.
“There will be eight new players,” he explained. “They are two different games but the experience gained for these players is really important in order to improve for the next match against Holland or for the Euros.” Asked about young Chelsea striker Daniel Sturridge’s possible England debut, Capello added: “One hundred per cent he will start on the bench. “All of the young players
who come from the U-21’s have been monitored for a long time. I spoke to Stuart (Pearce, England U-21 coach) and the players’ coaches and all of these people told me they are really, really good. “I checked on them too and have been happy with their performances and their personalities and the confidence they play with. It’s difficult to find such players with the confidence they showed against Spain.” — AFP
bERLIN: FOOTBALL/ INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY
Germans to send Euro warning with win over Holland
GERMANY are eager to beat rivals Holland in tomorrow’s friendly and send a clear message to all fellow Euro 2012 contenders that they are ready for their first title since 1996, team manager Oliver Bierhoff (pic) has said. The Germans, who reached next year’s tournament with 10 wins from 10 qualifiers, will have goalkeeper Manuel Neuer back in the squad as well as strikers Miroslav Klose and Marco Reus after they recovered from injury. Coach Joachim Loew will
drop some of the changes he introduced for Friday’s mediocre 3-3 friendly draw in Ukraine, including a threeman defence that looked more than shaky. He is likely to start with Bundesliga top scorer Mario Gomez and Klose in a twopronged attack as part of a 4-4-2 system he has not used in two years. “This is an extremely serious game. We want to leave a sign that we can take on and beat the very best,” Bierhoff told reporters ahead of the game in Hamburg. “We want to finish the year
with a victory and beating the Dutch is always double the fun.” Three-time European champions Germany won their last major title at Euro 1996. Last year’s World Cup runners-up Holland, who enjoy a healthy and long-standing football rivalry with their neighbours, were jeered by their own fans after being held to a lacklustre 0-0 friendly draw by Switzerland on Friday. The Dutch, also through to Euro 2012, will be looking to improve on their per-
formance on Friday without key players Robin van Persie and Rafael van der Vaart. Arsenal captain van Per-
sie has been ruled out due to fatigue after playing 90 minutes against the Swiss. — Reuters
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