Unimpressive victory
Riding her luck
MARIA SHARAPOVA proved she is not afraid to win ugly as she overcame her nerves for a straight sets win against Sabine Lisicki this morning
PETRA KVITOVA hopes Victoria Azarenka’s curse of losing to eventual tournament winners will go her way
>> pg29
>> pg29
Friday 1 JULY, 2011 LOCAL
BARCELONA: FOOTBALL/ PRIMERA LIGA
It’s curtains for famed Barca institution BARCELONA’S famed La Masia, the quaint 18thcentury Catalan stone farmhouse that became the symbol of Barcelona’s famed football academy, closed its doors to recruits this morning after more than three decades of nurturing talent. The academy has produced homegrown players since 1979 including the club’s greatest crop of talents like World Playerof-the-Year Lionel Messi and current coach “Pep” Guardiola. However, a move to a more modern complex at the club’s training ground means La Masia de Can Planes, built in 1702, will now be turned into a museum. Director of sport and youth football Guillermo Amor, who was among the first players developed at La Masia, told Reuters: “For me, this place has not been just a residence for athletes but my home.” “Today is not an easy day.” “We will have a marvellous new residence and we should make sure the family atmosphere is transferred there.” Barca director Carles Folguera said he and his colleagues were excited about the new Masia, which cost around €9m (RM39.4m) and will house some 80 young hopefuls when it opens next month. “We are switching to a residence that will be an example for the world due to the immense possibilities it will generate,” Folguera told reporters. “We will continue to work with the same ideas,” he added. “We are happy when success is accompanied by educating excellent people.” -- Agencies
FOOTBALL
Precarious position MALAYSIA face a tough time ahead of the Asian World Cup qualifier second-leg against Taiwan after conceding a late away goal
>> pg28
Anfield beckons... yet again
ALBERTO AQUILANI is looking forward to returning to Liverpool after Juventus failed to convert his season-long loan into a permanent deal
>> pg31
PRESSTALK
Berba bound for Spain?
VALENCIA are the latest side reported to be interested in out of favour Manchester United forward Dimitar Berbatov
LATIN HEAT
Messi wants to end Argies’ cup drought LIONEL MESSI is determined more than ever to end Argentina’s trophy drought by bagging the Copa America in front of their own fans
>> pg31
>> pg30
LIVERPOOL: FOOTBALL/ PREMIER LEAGUE
Empty promises New Reds managing director hits out at former owners
NEWLY-PROMOTED Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre has hit out at the club’s former owners for failing to build a new stadium. Tom Hicks and George Gillett promised to make building a new ground on Stanley Park a priority when they took over the club in 2007, but failed to even start the project. The Americans have since been bought out by Fenway Sports Group, which promoted Ayre from commercial director at the end of last season. Ayre criticised Hicks and Gillett for neglecting their promise and said the club was lucky to be in as good a position as it is now. “When you look at what we have done in growing the business, if we had started building a stadium in 2007 we would be in it by now,” he told the Li v e r p o o l
Daily Post. “It could have been brilliant but we have probably set ourselves back several years.” Ayre also added the club have cost themselves money along the way by not putting up a new home. “There was a great opportunity to maximise the value of the club and they (Hicks and Gillett) were right. They needed a new stadium and new people. Without the significant increase in revenues God knows how much of a mess we would have been in.” B u t Ayre said
the new owners have been great for the club and will continue to be so going forward. “What we have now is people who really understand how to own, operate and run a sports business. They are very honest about their objectives. They listen — that’s quite fundamental.” Ever since the new Liverpool owners came in, there has been an ongoing discussion about whether to build a new stadium or redevelop Anfield.
However, Ayre said no decision has been made yet and they will not be rushed. “Nobody is going to force ourselves or the owners to make a decision until we know what’s right for the club, because that was what partly went wrong before. “Sometimes people won’t like that it takes a long time. That’s unfortunate but it’s the way we do it. Once a week someone will ask me what is happening with the stadium and the answer is ‘we don’t know’. “The reason we don’t know is there are still the two solutions. They are a new stadium
in Stanley Park or a refurbished Anfield — that obviously comes with all sorts of issues - and there are a million questions to answer.” Ayre also added Liverpool will need a naming partner before deciding to move forward with a new stadium. “The new stadium in the park comes down to the economics. How do we pay it back? It needs a big naming partner. Until you get the answer to those questions it would be wrong and unprofessional for us to make a statement about what we are doing.” — Agencies
BAD MANAGEMENT: Ayre (pic) claims former owners Gillett and Hicks let the club down by failing to build a new stadium — GETTYpic
Published by Malay Mail Sdn Bhd (239512V), Lot 2A, Jalan 13/2, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, and printed by The New Straits Times Press (Malaysia) Berhad (4485-H), 31, Jalan Riong, 59100 KL