Football News | Football Gossips | Football Transfers | Football Saga | Football Rumours: 09/01/2009

Teenager's double trouble for Liverpool

Teenager Stevan Jovetic bagged a deadly double as Fiorentina shocked visitors Liverpool 2-0 in Champions League Group E on Tuesday night.

The Reds went into the game without hamstring injury victim Javier Mascherano, and really missed his composure and passing in midfield, with his replacement Fabio Aurelio struggling to fill the Argentinian's boots.

Rafael Benitez's troops failed to register a single shot on target in a first half which saw young striker Jovetic beat Pepe Reina on 28 and 37 minutes.

The opening goal came when Cristiano Zanetti's throughball found the 19-year-old, who coolly slotted past Reina from 15 yards.

And it was 2-0 to the hosts when Juan Manuel Vargas' fierce cross into the box from the left was deftly turned past the Reds stopper at his near post.

Benitez stirred his misfiring men at the interval, as in minutes they created three clearcut second-half chances, with Sebastian Frey saving shots from Yossi Benayoun and Dirk Kuyt, and Lucas Leiva steering a free header from a corner inches over the crossbar.

Jamie Carragher whistled a 25-yard drive narrowly wide of the upright on the hour mark, Fernando Torres volleyed high and wide on 76 and Steven Gerrard looped a header just off target in the closing stages.

But the Italians held on for three vital points which blows Group E wide open.

Second-half strikes from Robin van Persie and Andrey Ashavin earned Arsenal a 1-0 Champions League win over Olympiakos at The Emirates.

Veteran Greek keeper Antonis Nikopolidis frustrated the Gunners for much of this Group H clash, repelling almost everything the hosts could throw at him until van Persie finally broke the deadlock with 12 minutes remaining, prior to Arshavin's beautiful finish late on.

The Gunners spent the vast majority of the first period camped in the Greeks' half, but a combination of keeper, woodwork and poor finishing saw the score remain goalless at the break.

Cesc Fabregas came closest to breaking the deadlock in the early exchanges, when the Arsenal skipper saw his left-footed strike from just outside the box bounce back off the crossbar, while Nikopolidis was in inspired form to deny Tomas Rosicky, Fabregas, Arshavin and van Persie.

Vito Mannone, the Gunners' hero in the weekend victory over Fulham, was called upon to make his first and only real save of the game just after the break, when the young Italian stopper clawed away a header from former Aston Villa defender Olof Mellberg following a rare Olympiakos corner.

Nikopolidis, who caught little but stopped almost everything, kept out van Persie again with 17 minutes remaining, moments before superbly parrying Abou Diaby's downward header around the post. The Greek keeper was finally beaten, however, on 73 minutes.

Substitute Eduardo got in on the left side of the Olympiakos box and instead of shooting from a narrow angle, the Croatian striker chose to square the ball across goal, taking Nikopolidis out of the equation and leaving van Persie with a close-range tap-in to an empty net.

Having finally grabbed a deserved lead, the Gunners could relax a little, and their second was a result of a beautiful flowing move culminating in a wonderful finish from Arshavin.

The Russian was involved in the build-up as the Gunners finally worked the ball out to Carlos Vela on the right. The Mexican picked out Arshavin in the box, who despite looking offside, found the net with a right-footed flick behind his standing foot.

Fabregas was booked for needless lunge late on but that won't take the gloss off a good result and fine performance from Arsene Wenger's men, who have now claimed maximum points from their two Champions League games and sit three points clear at the top of Group H.

Sevilla showed their European pedigree with a 4-1 Champions League victory over Glasgow Rangers at Ibrox on Tuesday night.

Early in the Group G clash, Rangers striker Steven Naismith headed over before Pedro Mendes fired wide.

On 37 minutes Abdoulay Konko bundled over Naismith in the box, but the penalty appeals were ignored by Swedish referee Jonas Eriksson.

In the second half Sevilla showed their class.

Jesus Navas crossed to Konko who scored with a free header on 50.

The Spanish side doubled their lead on 64 when Luis Fabiano crossed to Adriano at the back post and he fired the ball into the bottom right-hand corner.

On 72 Fredi Kanoute whipped in a deep cross and Luis Fabiano got in front of Steven Whittaker to head past Allan McGregor.

Two minutes later Luis Fabiano crossed for Kanoute who was free in the middle and he slotted home.

Nacho Novo scored a consolation for Rangers on 88 when he cut in from the left and fired a superb low shot past Andres Palop.

Inter Milan held in Russia

Inter Milan were held to a surprise 1-1 draw at Rubin Kazan in the Champions League on Tuesday night, but the Italian champions will be relieved to have left Russia with a point after ending the game with 10 men.

Rubin took the lead in the 11th minute thanks to Alejandro Dominguez but the hosts gifted Dejan Stankovic the equaliser on the half hour.

The hosts were somewhat unfortunate not to take all three points after playing out the final half hour at a feverish pace following the dismissal of Mario Balotelli for a second bookable offence.

Barcelona are top of Group F after a 2-0 win over Dynamo Kiev, who fall to second.

Lionel Messi put the holders ahead after 26 minutes when Andreas Iniesta's pass found him on the right. Messi then cut in and sent in a low left-footed shot into the net.

Rodriguez Pedrito doubled the lead when he stroked the ball past the goalkeeper following a pass by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

In Group E, Lyon got their second win from two games as they beat Debrecen 4-0.

Debrecen went behind after just three minutes against Lyon when Kim Kallstrom volleyed in Miralem Pjanic's corner and things went from bad to worse for the Hungarian side when Pjanic scored from a free-kick 10 minutes later.

It was all over after just 24 minutes with Pjanic involved again. This time his corner was met by captain Sidney Govou whose header deflected off Peter Czvitkovics and into the net.

Bafetimbi Gomis made it four six minutes after half-time to leave the French team top of the group.

Unirea Urziceni and Stuttgart shared a 1-1 draw in Group G.

The Germans took an early lead when a Timo Gebhart challenge saw the ball run loose to Sergar Tasci, who fired into the net.

However, the hosts levelled three minutes after half-time when Dacian Varga curled a shot into the far left corner.

In Group H AZ Alkmaar took the lead in their match against Standard Liege shortly after half-time when Mounir El Hamdaoui collected the ball and in one movement, turned and sent a shot into the net.

However, Mouss Traore levelled for Standard in the final minute for a 1-1 draw.

Steven Naismith and his Rangers team-mates left Ibrox last night seething over the double-whammy that arguably proved the turning point in their comprehensive 4-1 Champions League defeat by Sevilla.

In the 37th minute, with the Light Blues coming back into the game after surviving some early pressure, Naismith was bundled to the ground inside the penalty area by Sevilla defender Abdoulay Konko as he shaped up to go through on goal.

To the astonishment of the Rangers fans in the 40,000-plus crowd, Swedish referee Jonas Eriksson ignored claims for a spot-kick, denying the home side the chance to take the lead from the spot and allowing the visitors to keep 11 men on the pitch. It was Konko who added insult to injury for the Govan men when he headed Sevilla ahead five minutes into the second half.

As Rangers unravelled, further strikes from Adriano, Luis Fabiano and Frederic Kanoute gave the classy Spanish side maximum points after two Group G games, leaving Rangers, who grabbed a late consolation through substitute Nacho Novo, bottom with one point.

Naismith, who impressed in his lone striker's role, emerged from the dressing room to say: "In my eyes it was a stonewall penalty. The ball ricocheted off their player and I took my touch beyond him and he caught my leg.

"I don't understand why I would go down when I was one on one with the goalie.

"I was disappointed not to get it and obviously it could have been a turning point in the game.

"A few folk have pointed out that he would have been off if the penalty had been given.

"As I said, in my eyes it was a penalty and he might have got a red card.

"You need those things to go for you and last night it didn't."

Midfielder Lee McCulloch was equally frustrated, saying: "I've not seen it back on television, but what can you say? "I think the referee said Steven slipped but for me it was a stonewall penalty.

"But you have to keep going and I think we did that."

Naismith admits the Ibrox side did not cope well after losing the first goal.

"We will sit over the days and analyse the goals we lost," the Scotland striker said. "Once you lose number one and two, there is no point in sitting back and just playing the game out.

"But I think we did get caught a little on the break as well.

"It was a harsh lesson, to be honest, a very harsh lesson."

Arsenal showed an increase in turnover and a record profit after tax of £35.2million from results for the year ending May 31, which were released on Monday morning.

The turnover of the Gunners' parent holding company, which also has substantial property interests at the Highbury Square development, went up to £313.3m from £223m for the same period last year.

Arsenal's move to the Emirates Stadium in 2006 - funded by a long-term loan at a fixed interest rate - continues to pay dividends, with matchday revenue increased to £100.1m from £94.6m which was mainly down to progress to the semi-finals of both the Champions League and FA Cup.

Operating profits, before depreciation and player trading, in the football business were up from £59.6m to £62.7m.

The Highbury Square development, meanwhile, remains robust despite the difficult financial climate and falling house prices, with the completion of 208 private apartments bringing in £88m, while, since the end of the financial year, more units have been sold at the club's former ground.

Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood insists results on the pitch will always come ahead of profit.

Manager Arsene Wenger has so far refused to spend heavily in new players, instead placing faith in youth and re-signing key men like captain Cesc Fabregas, England forward Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie, last season's leading scorer, on long-term deals.

Nevertheless, despite relative progress with a Champions League final appearance in 2006, Arsenal have failed to deliver a trophy since 2005.

Lifelong Gunners fan Hill-Wood knows all too well the importance of consistency on the pitch, which ultimately drives all other parts of the business.

"The group's profits have now risen in each of the three years in which Emirates Stadium has been our home. This is excellent news, although I should perhaps stress that making and reporting profits is not in itself the primary objective for the directors," Hill-Wood said in his report.

"First and foremost we are supporters of this great football club and, as such, our main goal will always be the achievement of success for Arsenal on the field.

"The group's profitability is important because it is a by-product of running the club as a solvent and successful business, which in turn allows us to maximise the level of investment in the playing staff and in the future development of the club."

Hill-Wood added: "Arsene has the resources to bring more players in, if he believes doing so will add to the quality which we already have in the squad."

Much has been made of whether Arsenal should accept being bankrolled by outside investment, as all of their top-four rivals, which now include cash-rich Manchester City, have done.

Indeed, City raided the Emirates Stadium for both striker Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure this summer, while Wenger opted to bring in just Belgium defender Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax for £10million, leaving him with a healthy surplus.

Earlier this year, the Arsenal board decided against a proposed rights issue to generate new cash which was put forward and underwritten by the Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, the second biggest stakeholder in the Barclays Premier League club.

Usmanov - whose Red & White Holdings group have a stake of around 25% - had argued the scheme would help to reduce both the long-term debt and also hand Wenger extra transfer funds.

Arsenal also have Stan Kroenke as a non-executive director.

The American is entrepreneur now the club's largest individual shareholder, but just short of the 30% threshold which would, under City rules, trigger an automatic formal takeover bid.

Hill-Wood felt a new rights issue just to help buy players would be "at odds with our ethos".

The Arsenal chairman said: "In the final analysis I believe it distils down to a decision about whether it is appropriate to raise money from shareholders to purchase the registrations and pay the wages of footballers.

"This is not something that Arsenal has ever done previously in its history and it would be at odds with our ethos of running the club as a business which is self-sustaining and pays its own way in the world."

AC Milan coach Leonardo has appealed to Rossoneri supporters not to give up on his struggling outfit.

The sale of Kaka to Real Madrid and the departure of coach Carlo Ancelotti to Chelsea has been followed by a woeful start to the season, with Sunday's goalless home draw against newly-promoted Bari leaving Milan 11th in the standings.

Just 34,000 fans turned up at the Giuseppe Meazza stadium to watch Milan on Sunday and many booed at the end of the game.

"We are struggling psychologically although our team has the experience to react," Leonardo said.

"We hope that more fans can turn up to the stadium, the team needs their support."

The result against Bari capped a frustrating week for Leonardo.

It followed the Rossoneri's 1-0 defeat at Udinese in midweek and left them seven points behind league leaders Sampdoria.

"Bari played very well," Leonardo said. "We struggled against them and in the end the boos, just like the applause, are also deserved.

"We risked losing this game so we have to be relieved to have claimed a point."

Milan's hero was their goalkeeper, Marco Storari, who denied Bari on several occasions.

The biggest problem for Leonardo's squad has been its inability to score.

They have managed just one goal in their last five league games.

Top summer signing Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Ronaldinho have yet to score this season.

"We are really struggling to create chances," Leonardo said. "It is normal that the fans expect us to get a result at the San Siro."

Milan host FC Zurich on Wednesday in the Champions League and travel to Bergamo to face Atalanta on Sunday.

Bologna striker Adailton scored three minutes into injury time as they drew 1-1 with Juventus to prevent their hosts going top of Serie A.

With Sampdoria having beaten previous leaders Inter Milan, Juve could have replaced the Blucerchiati atop the standings with a win and seemed well placed when David Trezeguet put them ahead after 24 minutes.

But Bologna never gave up and salvaged a deserved point when Adailton converted Pablo Osvaldo's late cross.

Daniele De Rossi's last-gasp equaliser handed Roma a share of the spoils from a 1-1 draw in their clash with Catania.

The Sicilian outfit thought they had claimed their first triumph of the campaign courtesy of Takayuki Morimoto's first-half goal, only for De Rossi to ruin the party deep in stoppage time.

Catania finished the game a man light after substitute Gennaro Delvecchio was handed his marching orders for dissent soon after Roma restored parity.

Goalkeeper Marco Storari saved AC Milan from another embarrassing defeat as they only just managed to hold a lively Bari to a goalless draw at the San Siro.

The Apulian side attacked from start to finish and will wonder how they did not manage to come away from Milan with all three points as the Rossoneri once again disappointed in front of their own fans, who let their feelings known at the final whistle.

A late goal from Mauro Zarate spared Lazio's blushes at the Stadio Olimpico as the Romans salvaged a point from a 1-1 draw against Palermo.

The hosts looked to be heading for their third consecutive home defeat of the season following substitute Edison Cavani's 75th-minute opener for Palermo.

But Zarate popped up in the final five minutes to snatch a share of the spoils for Lazio.

Marek Hamsik struck twice in the second half at San Paolo to hand Napoli a second win of the season, 2-1 at the expense of struggling Siena, and ease the pressure on Roberto Donadoni.

Massimo Maccarone brought Siena level after 55 minutes after Hamsik's opener but the Slovakian's second sealed the win that leaves the visitors just above the relegation zone with four points from six Serie A outings.

Donadoni's position had come under scrutiny following three defeats in five matches but, having received the unequivocal support of president Aurelio De Laurentiis, the former Italy boss saw his side pick up a much-needed win.

Cagliari made it two wins from two with a solid 2-0 victory over Parma to underline the belief they have finally kick-started their season.

Jeda got them off to the perfect start with his seventh-minute goal and Daniele Dessena doubled his side's advantage shortly before the hour mark.

It brings to an end Parma's impressive record of not having tasted defeat at the Stadio Ennio Tardini since May 2008 and is a fantastic result for Cagliari, who before Wednesday's victory over Bari had lost all of their opening four fixtures.

Atalanta continue the search for their first win of the Serie A season after a 1-1 draw with Chievo at the Stadio Marc Antonio Bentegodi.

Simone Tiribocchi broke the deadlock for the visitors, but their lead lasted just five minutes with Sergio Pellissier hitting back for Chievo.

The draw was not enough to move Atalanta out of the bottom three, while Chievo sit eighth in the standings.

Two late goals gave Udinese all three points as they leapfrogged opponents Genoa thanks to a 2-0 victory.

Antonio Di Natale netted his eighth goal in six games in the 82nd minute to unlock a tight game, before Simone Pepe secured all three points one minute from the end.

The result takes the Bianconeri up to fifth while Genoa, who have now picked up just one point in their last three games, drop to sixth.

On Saturday, Sampdoria moved to the top of Serie A after shocking defending champions Inter Milan with their fifth win in six games, 1-0 at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.

A goal from Giampaolo Pazzini in the 72nd minute was enough to decide a very tight, yet entertaining encounter, inflicting Inter's first defeat of the season.

Both sides had made a positive start to the season, with Inter dropping only two points so far and Samp seeing their four-game winning streak only ended by Fiorentina in midweek.

The Viola warmed up for the visit of Liverpool in the Champions League on Tuesday with a 1-0 victory over Livorno to move level on points with second-placed Inter.

Stevan Jovetic scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot in the 76th minute as the Viola, who had Dario Dainelli sent off late on, made it two wins in four days to leapfrog Genoa into fourth place.

But the Viola had goalkeeper Sebastian Frey to thank for a string of marvellous saves to keep another crucial clean sheet.

Two late goals gave Udinese all three points as they leapfrogged opponents Genoa in Serie A thanks to a 2-0 victory.

Antonio Di Natale netted his eighth goal in six games in the 82nd minute to unlock a tight game, before Simone Pepe secured all three points one minute from the end.

The result takes the Bianconeri up to fifth while Genoa, who have now picked up just one point in their last three games, drop to sixth, five points adrift of their city rivals Sampdoria, who lead the way at the top.

Genoa recovered from their first defeat of the season last weekend by claiming a 2-2 draw against Juventus on Thursday, but the strains of that game soon started to show, particularly as coach Gian Piero Gasperini resisted the temptation to rotate his side.

Only Rodrigo Palacio and Domenico Criscito were new in his starting XI while Udinese started with their strongest possible side, with seven-goal hitman Antonio Di Natale leading a four-man attack which also included Simone Pepe, Antonio Floro Flores and Alexis Sanchez.

With such an array of attacking talent on show - Genoa had Hernan Crespo, Giuseppe Sculli and Palacio in their front-line - goals could have been expected, but in the end, they were at a premium.

Palacio had the first chance to score in the eighth minute with a shot out of nothing which just missed the outside of the post.

Pepe had an even better chance for Udinese three minutes later when Salvatore Bocchetti misjudged a lofted pass over his head, but the Italy international volleyed inches over the crossbar from 10 yards.

Crespo could have earned Genoa a penalty had he gone down under the challenge of Aleksander Lukovic, but he stayed on his feet in a bid to get in a shot which, given Lukovic's foul, became complicated.

Di Natale had the next chance in the 37th minute with the ball getting caught between his feet, although he was still able to get in a shot from 20 yards which tested Marco Amelia in the Udinese goal.

Crespo then headed over after beating the offside trap to reach Omar Milanetto's lobbed pass shortly before the interval.

Genoa were appealing for a penalty early in the second half when Palacio's cross hit the hand of Maurizio Domizzi. The referee decided the offence had taken place outside the area, however, and only awarded a free-kick.

The game seemed to be heading for a draw until Di Natale showed why his name is at the top of the Serie A goalscoring charts in the 82nd minute.

He started and finished the move which broke the deadlock, playing a neat one-two inside the penalty area with Sanchez before shooting on the turn to beat Amelia, who got a touch on the ball, but not enough to prevent it from going in.

And Pepe sealed the win in the last minute with a fine shot in off the inside of the post to take the Bianconeri above the Rossoblu in the Serie A standings.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Gerard Pique came off the bench to inspire Barcelona to a fifth straight Primera Division win as they beat a hard-working Malaga side 2-0.

Ibrahimovic was left out of the starting line-up after picking up an ankle injury in Tuesday night's 4-1 win at Racing Santander.

But the Sweden striker has been making good progress in his recovery and was called upon after Thierry Henry was forced off through injury just short of the half-hour mark.

And Ibrahimovic was on the scoresheet 10 minutes later to bag his fifth goal in as many league games since joining from Inter Milan in the summer.

But Pique took even less time to make an impact, bagging a second for the Catalans only three minutes after replacing Dmytro Chygrynskiy just short of an hour, before Malaga had Duda sent off late on.

Those two strikes gave Barcelona a fifth win in five Primera Division matches this season, but saw the Catalans drop to second place after fierce rivals Real Madrid thrashed Tenerife 3-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu to go top of the table on goal difference.

Barca coach Pep Guardiola decided to leave Ibrahimovic on the bench and, with Bojan Krkic out injured, Henry moved into the centre of the side's three-pronged attack.

Lionel Messi began on the left as Pedro came in for a rare start on the right.

Barca had won all four of their previous league matches and came into this match on top the table.

But the first chance of the night fell to Malaga.

Nigerian striker Victor Obinna latched onto Duda's pass, but shot into the side netting from close range and the visitors survived.

Malaga began the season with an impressive 3-0 victory over Atletico Madrid at La Rosaleda, but the Andalusians have struggled since then and came into this match on the back of three straight defeats.

With Ibrahimovic out, Henry had the chance to impress.

The former Arsenal striker has not scored this season for Barca and had a seemingly golden chance to shine.

But the Frenchman was forced off though injury after 29 minutes and replaced by Ibrahimovic.

And the Swede was on the scoresheet 10 minutes later, when he latched onto Messi's through-ball and slotted home, albeit from what looked like an offside position.

Barca were stroking the ball in customary fashion, but Malaga were working hard and restricting the Catalans to very few real attempts on goal.

The second goal finally came just short of the hour mark.

Pique, who netted against Atletico earlier this season and in the famous 6-2 victory at the Bernabeu last term, replaced Chygrynskiy and poked past Gustavo Munua to put Barca two up three minutes after stepping off the bench.

Messi missed two good chances to make it three and return the Catalans to the top of the league, but in the end Guardiola's side had to be content with a two-goal victory which preserved their 100% record after five rounds if the championship.

They also finished the game a man up after Duda was dismissed for Malaga.

Real Madrid continued their 100% start to the season after producing a classy second-half display to see off battling Tenerife 3-0 at the Bernabeu.

Manuel Pellegrini's decision to introduce Kaka and Guti at the break proved decisive as Madrid put an uninspiring first-half performance behind them to take the spoils thanks to a Karim Benzema brace and a 25-yard strike from Kaka.

The victory means Madrid now boast five wins from five whilst promoted Tenerife, who hit the post in the second half and were unlucky to come up against some inspired goalkeeping by Iker Casillas, slipped to their third successive away loss.

In their previous two matches against Xerez and Villarreal, Madrid had taken the lead inside the opening 90 seconds thanks to individual efforts from Cristiano Ronaldo, but the home fans had to wait until almost 30 minutes to witness even a decent shot on goal.

Ronaldo was once again the man who made something happen, and his half-blocked shot from the edge of the area fell kindly to Raul, whose first-time volley was stopped by Tenerife goalkeeper Sergio Aragoneses.

Aside from that though, and a looping deflected cross by Alejandro Alfaro that forced the back-pedalling Casillas a moment of concern before he pushed the ball away to safety, there was precious little for the supporters to get excited about in the opening period.

Madrid coach Pellegrini had clearly seen enough as well as he made two changes at the break, replacing Esteban Granero and Sergio Ramos with Kaka and Guti. The move reaped instant dividends as Madrid took the lead just minutes into the second half.

Kaka's corner was semi-cleared by the Tenerife defence but Xabi Alonso picked up possession and his curling ball back into the area was met by Benzema, whose header sneaked just inside the near post.

That goal not only broke the deadlock but also proved the catalyst for a hugely entertaining second half.

Within 10 minutes of that goal Tenerife had twice gone close, with Casillas tipping over a Roman Martinez effort and Nino seeing a lob go just wide, while at the other end Ronaldo was denied a superb solo goal by a brilliant save by Aragoneses.

More goals looked on the cards though, and Madrid's second duly arrived in the 58th minute and again it was Benzema.

Tenerife centre-back Manolo Martinez looked favourite to deal with a long hopeful punt forward, but Benzema managed to muscle him off the ball before coolly curling his shot past the helpless Aragoneses.

Two minutes after that and the Frenchman was almost celebrating his hat-trick as his left-footed shot fizzed just wide of the far post.

The goalmouth action continued with Ronaldo bringing a parry out of Aragoneses, before the momentum suddenly shifted and Tenerife started laying siege to the Madrid goal.

Julian Omar was unfortunate to see his shot hit the post, while Casillas then produced fine saves to deny Alfaro and Nino.

The Spain number one saved his best for the 74th minute though as he made a remarkable double stop to first parry Alfaro's low drive and then somehow managed to deny Nino from the rebound.

Tenerife deserved to get on the scoresheet, but it would end up being Madrid who got the next goal with Kaka scoring a magnificent effort.

Raul's shot was blocked on the edge of the box but Tenerife had not escaped as Kaka picked up the loose ball before placing an unstoppable shot into the top corner of the net to seal the win.

Osasuna on the track beating Gijon

Osasuna continue to recover from a poor start to the season after seeing off Sporting Gijon 1-0 at the Estadio Reyno de Navarra.

Javad Nekounam struck the only goal of the game with a second-half penalty as Osasuna made it two wins from two, having previously taken only one point from their opening three games.

Osasuna had to wait until the 12th round of fixtures for their first victory last season, and until week 16 for their second, so the Pamplona-based side will be delighted with the way they have turned things round at the start of this campaign.

Jose Antonio Camacho's men, who only survived the drop last time out after somehow managing to beat Barcelona and Real Madrid in their final two games, beat Real Valladolid 2-1 in midweek and they followed that up with a deserved three-point haul.

Following an evenly-matched start, Osasuna had a great chance to take the lead in the 33rd minute but Carlos Aranda spurned it.

The in-form Juanfran did well down the right before dinking in a cross from the right that looked to have goal written all over it as the unmarked Aranda threw himself at the ball five yards out, but the much-travelled forward could only glance his header wide of the far post.

With most of Sporting's efforts coming from long-range, Osasuna looked to be in control of the game and they created another good opportunity just before the break, only for the visitors to survive again.

A deep free-kick from Miguel Flano was flicked on by Walter Pandiani and Shojaei Massoud's acrobatic effort beat Sporting goalkeeper Juan Pablo Colinas only for a defender to get back and hack the ball off the line.

Osasuna were back in the box seat following the break as well and Pandiani, looking for his fourth goal of the season, went close with a well-struck drive from the edge of the box.

Pandiani scored a brilliant 35-yard dipping thunderbolt in the win over Valladolid but he was unable to find the net this time.

Osasuna did not have to wait too much longer to take the lead though, when the home side were awarded a penalty after Massoud's attempted cross from the left struck the outstretched hand of Rafael Sastre.

The Sporting players were not best pleased by the decision, and their mood was unlikely to have improved as Nekounam sent Colinas the wrong way from the spot to score what would prove to be the winning goal.

Osasuna came close to doubling their lead in the 65th minute after a loose pass by Sporting midfielder Alberto Rivera gifted Juanfran the ball in front of goal, but the former Real Madrid winger's shot struck the far post as Manuel Preciado's side, and Rivera in particular, breathed a sigh of relief.

The Asturian outfit could not make the let-off count at the other end however, as apart from a header from Mate Bilic that went just wide, Sporting failed to create much to trouble Osasuna.

Three and easy for Real Zaragoza

Real Zaragoza brought Getafe crashing back down to earth with a comprehensive win over the Madrid-based outfit in the Primera Division.

Getafe had looked highly impressive as they beat Valencia 3-1 on Wednesday night, but Michel's side were given a reality check in this match by a quality Zaragoza outfit at La Romareda.

Carlos Pavon gave the home side the lead after 17 minutes and Abel Aguilar added a second halfway through the first half as the locals took control in the penultimate match of the league's fifth round.

And Aguilar wrapped up a fine victory nine minutes from time to propel Zaragoza back into the top half of the table on their return to the top-flight and condemn Getafe to a third defeat in five.

English winger Jermaine Pennant was left on the bench as Zaragoza coach Marcelino Garcia Toral opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Colombian forward Aguilar playing just behind loan striker Javier Arizemendi through the middle.

Nevertheless, the first chance fell to Getafe as Manu Del Moral crashed a speculative long-range effort just wide of the target after eight minutes.

But Zaragoza were looking the better side and won a series of corners after that.

And from the third of those, Pavon rose majestically to head past Getafe keeper Oscar Ustari and put the home side in front.

Seven minutes later, Zaragoza then went two up. And once again the goal arrived from a corner.

Pavon was involved again, this time flicking on for Aguilar to head past Ustari at the far post and double the locals' lead.

Arizmendi and Jorge Lopez then both sent headers over the bar as Zaragoza continued to win every single ball that was put into the box.

Just before half-time, though, the visitors almost received a lifeline as Roberto Ayala came close to turning the ball into his own net.

Luckily for the veteran Argentinian centre-back, though, his compatriot Juan Pablo Carrizo reacted superbly to make the save.

Juan Albin almost got on the end of Pedro Leon's cross as the visitors sought a way back into the game in the second half.

But Zaragoza rarely looked troubled and came close to a third goal after 64 minutes, when Jorge Lopez fired into the side netting.

Roberto Soldado then headed wide at the other end in a rare Getafe attack.

It was not to be their night, though, and the visitors' misery was compounded with nine minutes remaining, when substitute Ewerthon put Aguilar through with a glorious pass and the Colombian forward finished coolly to bag his second of the night and ensure three more valuable points for Zaragoza.

The promoted side move up to seventh in the table, while Getafe are now 12th.

A Vedad Ibisevic hat-trick inspired Hoffenheim to a comfortable 5-1 win over Hertha Berlin which took Ralf Rangnick's side up to third in the Bundesliga and heaped further pressure on his opposite number Lucien Favre.

The Berlin boss led the capital club to fourth last term, but following Ibisevic's first goals of the season in the first, fourth and 21st minutes Favre finds his club bottom of the Bundesliga.

Raffael did pull a goal back for Berlin in first-half stoppage time, but further goals from Chinedu Obasi and Carlos Eduardo either side of the hour mark completed the rout which will probably seal the end of Favre's reign in charge of Berlin after their sixth straight defeat.

Ibisevic was the hero of Hoffenheim's sensational start to last season when his 18 goals in the first 17 games of the season took the league's newcomers to the top of the table at the midway stage of the campaign.

However, he tore cruciate knee ligaments during the winter break and missed the rest of the season.

That injury appeared to have left a mental scar on the Bosnian striker, but he got over that with a hat-trick in the space of 21 minutes to put the result beyond doubt before the midway stage of the first half.

He had the ball in the back of the net within 60 seconds, putting the finish to a fine team move which involved Sejad Salihovic and Obasi.

A huge weight appeared to be lifted from the 25-year-old, who added his second three minutes later.

He headed Carlos Eduardo's corner past Timo Ochs to put Hoffenheim in command of the game.

Obasi hit the post before Ibisevic completed his hat-trick in stunning fashion.

Again, it was an excellent team move with Carlos Eduardo switching play to the left where Salihovic volleyed to Andreas Beck, who laid the ball off for Ibisevic to head in.

Berlin tried to react and they reduced the arrears in first-half stoppage time when Raffael's direct free-kick left Timo Hildebrand no chance as it went in off the inside of the post.

It was only a momentary respite for Favre's forlorn troops.

Obasi added a fourth just shy of the hour mark as Berlin failed to clear their lines and Carlos Eduardo completed the scoring with a penalty minutes later after Ibisevic had been brought down inside the area by Marc Stein.

Freiburg continued their up-and-down season with a convincing 3-0 victory over Borussia Monchengladbach in their first win at home this season.

After a scoreless first half, Mohamadou Idrissou opened the scoring in the 54th minute before Yacine Abdessadki doubled the advantage after 72 minutes.

Julian Schuster finished off the scoring with 10 minutes to play.

Freiburg shocked Hertha Berlin 4-0 on the road last weekend but lost against Ausburg midweek in the second round of the DFB-Pokal.

Their fluctuating form has left them squarely in mid-table in 10th place, only two places better off than a Gladbach side that has now lost four of their last five games in the Bundesliga.

Freiburg clearly dominated the run of play in the first half but could not find the decisive pass inside the area.

They finally broke through nine minutes after the break for their first goal from a set-piece this season.

Ivica Banovic's corner from the left-hand side found Idrissou who hammered home a header from six yards for his fourth goal of the season.

At the other end, Simon Pouplin made a fine stop on a counter-attack by Karim Matmour four minutes later as Gladbach woke up offensively.

But it was Freiburg who scored again to make it 2-0 in the 72nd minute. A clearance attempt by the Gladbach defence landed right at the feet of a charging Abdessadki and the Moroccan unleashed a perfectly-placed blast from 25 yards just inside the left post.

Schuster put all doubts to bed eight minutes later, making it 3-0 as his shot from the edge of the area was deflected over Gladbach keeper Logan Bailly and in.

And Banovic nearly made it 4-0 with eight minutes left but his left footer went just over the crossbar.

Hamburg reclaimed top spot in the Bundesliga with a 1-0 win over Bayern Munich, who slipped down to sixth in the table.

Mladen Petric scored the only goal of the game in the 72nd minute thanks to an assist from former Bayern winger Ze Roberto.

Hamburg were good value for their win, which ended Bayern's three-game winning streak at a sell-out HSV-Arena.

Bayern coach Louis van Gaal included both Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben in his starting XI for the first time this season as part of seven alterations to the team which defeated Rot Weiss Oberhausen in the DFB-Pokal in midweek.

Hamburg coach Bruno Labbadia had also left several first-team regulars out of his side in midweek as they were eliminated from the cup by third division opponents Osnabruck.

David Jarolim, Piotr Trochowski, Jerome Boateng and Eljero Elia were all back in his side.

Ribery and Robben combined for the first time in the 11th minute with the latter placing his shot just inches wide of the far post.

Robben was proving to be a handful for the home defence as Bayern set a high tempo early on.

But they were unable to find the back of the net and Hamburg grew in confidence the longer they were able to keep their guests at bay.

Their first chance arrived on the half-hour mark when Hans-Jorg Butt had to stretch to make a fingertip save to deny Boateng.

From the resulting corner, Joris Mathijsen tested Butt once again and the Bayern goalkeeper made another impressive stop.

Butt was the busier of the two goalkeepers and he had to make further stops from Mathijsen and Petric as the home side, buoyed by a supportive crowd, increased the pressure.

They were rewarded in the 72nd minute when Ze Roberto, who spent six years with Bayern, dribbled his way to the byline from where he crossed low to the far post to give Petric an easy tap-in for the winning goal.

Wendel scored the only goal of the game as Bordeaux returned to the top of the Ligue 1 table with a 1-0 home win over the previously-unbeaten Rennes.

The decisive moment of the game arrived after 23 minutes when Benoit Tremoulinas' cross to the near post was headed in by Wendel. It was the Brazilian midfielder's third league goal of a so far unbeaten season for Bordeaux who have now taken 19 points from a possible 21.

A late goal from Pierre-Alain Frau earned Lille a share of the points from a 1-1 draw at home to fellow strugglers Nice.

Frau popped up with the equaliser two minutes from time to cancel out Loic Remy's opener for the visitors.

The result does little to help either club, however, with Nice in the bottom two, a point behind their opponents.

A perfect performance saw Le Mans record a resounding 3-0 victory over Lens, which was even more one-sided than the scoreline suggests.

A first-half brace from Frederic Thomas set the hosts on their way before Anthony Le Tallec sealed the victory on the hour mark.

It would have been much worse for Lens had it not been for a stunning performance from goalkeeper Vedran Runje.

The result sees Le Mans move into 15th spot, while Lens dropped three places into 13th.

On Saturday, Lyon leapt into top spot temporarily after coming from behind to see off Toulouse 2-1 at Stade Gerland.

Claude Puel's side knew a win would take them above their rivals but things began badly as Moussa Sissoko fired Toulouse into a ninth-minute lead.

It stayed that way until the 52nd minute when teenager Yannis Tafer equalised with his first goal in Ligue 1 and Bafetimbi Gomis netted the winner 18 minutes from time.

Elsewhere, Youssouf Hadji's first-half double gave Nancy their first win in four Ligue 1 matches as they beat Sochaux 2-1.

The Moroccan scored an early penalty and doubled the advantage before half-time to put the hosts on course for victory.

Although Marvin Martin pulled a goal back for Sochaux, it was not enough to stave off a third successive league defeat.

Valenciennes twice came from behind to end Marseille's unbeaten start to the season with a 3-2 victory in a pulsating clash.

The south coast side twice took the lead, through Fernando Morientes and Mamadou Niang, in the first half, but both times were pegged back, courtesy of levellers from Milan Bisevac and David Ducourtioux.

And VA's persistence was rewarded when they snatched all three points nine minutes from time when Rafael Schmitz headed home.

Paris St Germain had to settle for a point from a 1-1 draw against in-form Lorient.

The hosts took the lead five minutes before half-time through Arnold Mvuemba. Marama Vahirua combined with Kevin Gameiro on the edge of the penalty area before Mvuemba produced the decisive shot.

However, Paul Le Guen's side went in level at the interval courtesy of a goal in the dying seconds of the first half. Guillaume Hoarau made the breakthrough, calmly converting from close range after Giuly had crossed low into the penalty box.

Gonzalo Ruben Bergessio scored a last-minute winner to give strugglers St Etienne a surprise 2-1 victory in Monaco.

The visitors went into the match third from bottom in the table and eight points below their opponents but took the lead in only the third minute through Boubacar Sanogo.

Sebastien Puygrenier equalised for Monaco 10 minutes after the break but instead of building on the goal the hosts ended the match with nothing after Bergessio's late intervention.

Goals from Benoit Pedretti and Cedric Hengbart helped Auxerre to a 2-0 victory at the Stade de l'Abbe Deschamps and left Grenoble rooted to the bottom, still without a point after seven games.

There was an ugly incident in the 20th minute as Grenoble's David Jemmali hacked Auxerre forward Ireneusz Jelen to the floor, with the Pole retaliating by hitting out at the Tunisian defender. The referee sent off both players.

The victory was only Auxerre's second in the league this season to move them up to 13th.

Ajax came through a stern test to claim three Eredivisie points with a 3-0 victory against a spirited ADO Den Haag side to keep pace with the early-season pacesetters.

Demy De Zeeuw opened the scoring after 26 minutes, but the Amsterdam giants had to wait until 19 minutes from the end to add their second through Marko Pantelic.

Siem De Jong then added a third in stoppage time.

Feyenoord recorded their fifth win of the Eredivisie season as they beat NAC Breda 2-0, although the late dismissal of Denny Landzaat took the shine off the result.

Andwele Slory and Leroy Fer found the target for the Rotterdam club, with the second goal coming shortly after Landzaat had been given his marching orders.

Heracles Almelo held on to a 2-0 victory during a tense finale at NEC Nijmegen to finally get back to winning ways.

Everton headed the hosts in front in the ninth minute and their advantage was doubled in the 24th thanks to Bas Dost.

NEC were handed a lifeline 16 minutes from time when the referee somewhat controversially sent off Olivier Ter Horst and awarded the hosts a penalty.

But Youssef El Akchaoui hit the post and Heracles clung on to take the three points.

Struggling Heerenveen collected only their second three-point haul of the season so far as a 2-0 victory left Sparta Rotterdam winless from five home games.

Viktor Elm's penalty with 17 minutes to go sealed victory after Paulo Henrique had put Heerenveen in front late in the first half.

It was a deserved victory after Heerenveen dominated possession and showed signs they are ready to get their sputtering season into gear.

FC Groningen earned only their second win of the season as Danny Holla's first-half free-kick gave them a 1-0 victory over Vitesse Arnhem.

Koen Van de Laak missed a late penalty for the hosts but it made no difference to the final result as Vitesse had already wasted a couple of good chances to equalise.

On Saturday, Ronald Koeman's troubles at AZ Alkmaar continued as the defending champions slipped to a fourth defeat of the season.

Sander Keller's 14th-minute goal gave FC Utrecht a fifth win in seven matches and maintained their place among the early pacesetters.

Utrecht netted the only goal when Nana Asare's free-kick on the left found Keller, whose late run into the box was timed to perfection. He outjumped the AZ defence and headed the ball down and past goalkeeper Joey Didulica.

A first-half blitz gave leaders PSV Eindhoven a comfortable 3-1 win over Willem II at the Philips Stadion.

Excellent strikes from Otman Bakkal and Ibrahim Afellay sandwiched an Arjan Swinkels own goal as the hosts raced into a 3-0 lead.

They could not add to their tally in the second half and Willem II pulled one back through Frank Demouge four minutes from time, but it was comfortable for PSV.

FC Twente recovered from conceding an early goal to keep pace with PSV at the top by beating VVV-Venlo 2-1.

VVV stunned the hosts when Achmed Ahahaoui scored after just three minutes, but FC Twente quickly turned the match back in their favour with strikes by Bryan Ruiz and Douglas putting them in front by the 24th minute.

RKC Waalwijk earned their first win of the Eredivisie season in emphatic fashion as they came from behind to thrash Roda JC 4-1.

Having failed to score at home before this game, RKC made up for lost time as they replied to Willem Janssen's opener with goals from Fouad Idabdelhay, Charlison Benshop, Derk Boerrigter and Fred Benson.

Although RKC remain bottom of the table, their first points of the season will do much to lift the gloom at the Mandemakers Stadion.

Carlo Ancelotti wants to remain at Chelsea for as long as possible and then bring down the curtain on his career in six years time.

The Italian coach has guided the Blues to eight straight wins in all competitions so far this season.

But the former AC Milan coach admits he has changed his mind about retiring on a number of occasions since he began his managerial adventure in 1995.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger insists he will never retire from the profession but Ancelotti has set his sights on finally walking away from the game in 2015.

"I started to train in 1995 and, after two years of this job, I thought that, for me, I would end my career in 2000," said Ancelotti.

"When I got to 2000, I said: "Now it's better to continue because I like this."

"I thought I'd close my career in 2005 but after the Champions League final defeat against Liverpool, I thought it was better to continue. Now, my stop is 2015.

"I hope to stay here. It depends not only on me. But I can say that, after three months here, I hope to stay a long time."

Ancelotti will aim for his seventh straight win in the Premier League at Wigan on Saturday.

He will include England midfielder Joe Cole, who made his long awaited comeback against QPR in the Carling Cup in midweek, and Yuri Zhirkov in his squad.

The pair will start on the substitute's bench but Ancelotti already believes Cole can soon rediscover his top form and even force his way back into England's World Cup plans.

Cole set up Salomon Kalou's winning goal against Rangers and showed no ill-effects from the knee ligament damage which ended his season last January.

"Joe played very well and shows very good condition," said Ancelotti. I'm very happy for him. After eight months out, it's not easy to play like he does.

"I'm sure that England coach Fabio Capello knows him very well. I'm sure Joe can do very good things for the England team.

"He had great matches in the past with England. He can return and put this quality on the pitch for the national team.

"Yuri had a different problem, but he had a good 60 minutes. Now he's not in such good condition and he'll have to improve this.

"He's at 70 per cent of his physical condition, but both of them will travel to Wigan. We will start with them on the bench, but there's a chance they can play."

Striker Didier Drogba is fit to play against the Latics after shaking off the calf injury which forced him out of the game against Tottenham last Sunday.

"Didier had a problem last week, but he's completely rested and trained very well yesterday," added the Italian. "He's all right to play tomorrow."

Chelsea are now on an unbeaten run of 23 games stretching back to last March but breaking records is not something on Ancelotti's mind.

"I don't need supplementary motivation," he added. "I just want to do my best for this team and maintain this atmosphere.

"At the moment there's a very good atmosphere around this team. We have won all the games, so that atmosphere isn't unusual.

"Wigan like to play football on the ground, they don't use a lot of long balls and we have respect for this team because they have very good players."

Portsmouth boss Paul Hart says he does not fear for his job, despite his side's woeful start to their Premier League campaign.

The Fratton Park outfit have lost all of their opening six league matches and are currently pointless at the bottom of the table.

Hart has been made the bookmakers' favourite to be the next Premier League manager relieved of his duties ahead of his side's home clash with Everton ton Saturday lunchtime.

But when asked if he felt under pressure, the former Nottingham Forest manager said: "From what? Pressure to get the results - I want to get a result. That's what I'm about.

"What have I got to fear? I know what I do day in, day out and I have no fears about that.

"It's not me that's going to make decisions like that and it's not something I think about every waking hour.

"I'm not an owner. I'm a manager, a coach and that's what my job is."

He added: "There were a number of names touted around that were going to take the manager's job on, but there's only me here.

"I'm still here, I'm still backing the club and I think we can turn it around. I'm the man for the job."

Following reports Hart walked out of his Everton pre-match press conference on Thursday lunchtime after tough questions were asked about his future, the club released a statement to deny this.

A spokesman told their official website: "Paul did not walk out on the press. He answered all the questions put to him before the conference was halted by the club's director of communications, Gary Double.

"He was then led away to conduct other media interviews as is normal practice.

"Despite the difficult circumstances the club finds itself in, Paul has always carried out his media obligations before and after matches and has never walked out of a press conference or interview."

While Hart admits errors have cost his side dearly this term, he believes there have been positives to take from their six defeats.

He said: "A lot of good things have happened in the games and we have to concentrate on them.

"The lads are equally keen to put this record straight and I think keeping the spirits up is about concentrating on what we're doing right.

"Apart from working with them every day, I'm not sure I know how much else to do.

"We work, we talk, we look at things we do wrong and try to improve on the things we do right.

"We've created chances in all the games we've played this season. We've certainly dominated the last two in terms of possession.

"We've had strikes in excess of the opposition. If anything, we just need one of those to go in.

"I think the players are still getting used to playing with each other and we've shot ourselves in the foot in the last couple of games - it's not the opposition tearing us apart."

Saturday's clash with Everton sees former Portsmouth skipper Sylvain Distin return to Fratton Park following his move to the Toffees at the end of last month's transfer window.

While Hart wishes the Frenchman was still in Pompey colours, he admits he could not fault his contribution to the cause.

Hart said: "Sylvain was a great player and it's well documented how much we valued him.

"Unfortunately, the situation wasn't something I could do very much about and we were disappointed to lose him.

"Along with Sol Campbell, Herman Hreidarsson, Glen Johnson, David James and Peter Crouch, he turned in some magnificent performances last season."

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson insists there is more to come from his side as they continue to recover from a disappointing start to the season.

The defending Premier League champions suffered a shock loss at Burnley in August, but since they have been on a six-game winning run in all competitions ahead of Saturday's away match at Stoke.

Ferguson, though, believes there is still room for improvement and he expects his side to become stronger in October, which includes a trip to fierce rivals Liverpool.

The Scot, who was impressed by a 3-1 win over Tottenham at White Hart Lane earlier in September, is no longer worried by form and is only wrestling with team selection.

He said: "We had a bad start, there's no doubt about that, but the form of the team has been coming on well.

"Our best performance was at White Hart Lane. I'm happy with our form now. We have the squad and my only dilemma is who to play.

"Usually October sees us become more consistent and hopefully that will be the case again.

"The squad is a strong one and my only problem seems to be who to pick for each game."

Meanwhile, Ferguson is full of praise for Ryan Giggs as the 35-year-old continues to compete at the highest level.

"I don't know what more there is to say about him," added the United boss.

"It's not a matter of defying age with him because there has been no deterioration in his game at all and it's remarkable.

"It's down to how he has lived his life, how he has looked after himself and done the right things and his form is just as good as it was last year."

After sitting out Wednesday night's Carling Cup win over Wolves, Giggs could be called upon to face the robust test Stoke are bound to provide at the Britannia Stadium.

Ferguson felt United's Boxing Day success in the Potteries last term was one of the season's pivotal moments coming, as it did, just days after the Red Devils returned from their successful journey to Japan for the Club World Cup.

The champions have no such worries this time around as they make the short journey down the M6 but the United boss is still wary.

"Stoke are going to be a force," he said.

"They have a fantastic support. They say it is the noisiest in the country and I wouldn't disagree with that.

"Last season was about survival. It is not easy for anyone coming out of the Championship.

"But I saw a marked change there. There is good ambition, they have a good managerial structure and a good chairman.

"It is a club on the up."

Normally so cagey with his team selections, Ferguson has already confirmed Ben Foster will start in goal.

The England international has largely performed to an impressive level since beginning the season as first choice after Edwin van der Sar suffered the broken fingers that will keep him out for another three weeks.

Foster was poor in the derby though. He gifted City their first equaliser by allowing Carlos Tevez to rob him when he had initially been under no pressure, then he seemed to go down far too early and Craig Bellamy tapped home in the final minute of what seemed destined to be a draw until Owen struck.

But Ferguson is eager to display some faith in the former Stoke keeper and insists he never contemplated dropping him.

"Ben will play tomorrow," he said.

"I didn't have any doubts. He has not had a lot of game experience but he will be okay."

Fiorentina will attempt to put the turmoil of the past week behind them as they travel to Tuscan neighbours Livorno on Saturday.

Club president Andrea Della Valle stepped down on Thursday in the wake of growing discontent from fans.

However, coach Cesare Prandelli is confident it will have little effect on the dressing room.

"Tomorrow we will play our game with the right concentration and determination in the search for continuity," he said. "The relationship with the president has always been deep and sincere and it will remain so although with less of a presence.

"The players know they have not been left alone, that is the message sent by the president.

"We have to play our game, the sporting one. The team have to go onto the pitch motivated; the club have another match to play.

"Preparation for the game is the most important thing, as is the right determination and aggression."

Fiorentina bounced back from their 3-1 loss to Roma by ending Sampdoria's 100% record midweek.

Despite Livorno's lowly position Prandelli knows they face an equally tough task on Saturday and that they cannot afford to have one eye on Tuesday's Champions League clash at home to Liverpool.

"We are focused only on the Livorno game," he added. "It's unthinkable to have your mind on two things.

"We have to arrive prepared, it's a difficult derby because they are going through a particular period.

"We know we should not underestimate Livorno. Their characteristics are that of a squad with experience and physical strength.

"When you have experience you always find the right spirit and we have to be prepared."

Gianluca Comotto and Mario Alberto are both out of the trip after picking up injuries against Sampdoria, and Prandelli will be sweating on their fitness for the Liverpool match.

Livorno will be hoping to avoid their third straight defeat when they welcome Fiorentina to the Stadio Armando Picchi where the fans

are still waiting to see their first goal.

The newly-promoted side have yet to claim a victory this season after five games played and they lost 2-0 at Bologna midweek with a performance that left coach Vittorio Russo fuming.

"We played all right for half an hour but then after their first goal we fell apart and became nervous," he said. "I am not happy with my team's performance. They failed to react and we didn't play well.

"Now what's important is not to give up.

"I expect my players to show more determination, starting on Saturday when we face a big test against Fiorentina.

"In the derby we have to find the right concentration and grit."

Inter defender Nelson Rivas is back in training and has been included in the squad but is unlikely to feature against Fiorentina.

Tomas Danilevicius is definitely out.

Wolfsburg coach Armin Veh is considering breaking up the attack which was so successful in his club's Bundesliga title triumph last season after admitting he may listen to offers for Edin Dzeko in January.

Dzeko had his heart set on moving to AC Milan in the summer, but Wolfsburg declared the man who netted 26 times in the league last season was not for sale.

However, the situation has now changed and, with the Wolves struggling for their form having been knocked out of the DFB-Pokal in midweek, Veh is contemplating changes to his side which may involve the sale of Dzeko.

"Of course players of his class attract the interest of other clubs," he told the Wolfsburger Allgemeinen Zeitung newspaper.

"We have got to expect that. It was the case with Mario Gomez when I was at Stuttgart when we put a clause in his contract and the same would be the case with Dzeko.

"Players like him do have a price."

Juventus coach Ciro Ferrara had a bitter taste in his mouth after his side's perfect start to the Serie A campaign was ended with a 2-2 draw at Genoa last night.

The outcome saw Juve go level on 13 points with Inter Milan at the Italian summit after five games, but Ferrara was not satisfied.

"We deserved the victory," he said. "I saw a great Juve and this can only give us further motivation that we are on the right path.

"We played a great match against a Genoa side that play very well at home.

"We were superior but we didn't get the result we wanted.

"We were unfortunate regarding certain episodes."

With Juve trailing 2-1, they had a goal harshly disallowed for offside before David Trezeguet struck the equaliser with three minutes to go.

"Giorgio Chiellini's goal was not offside," said Ferrara.

"Games change because of these type of episodes.

"I can understand that it's not easy to sometimes see offsides and I think we were hard done by over this.

"Fortunately, we were able to restore parity with Trezeguet's goal."

Genoa coach Gian Piero Gasperini praised rivals Juve but also hailed his team's fighting spirit.

"It wasn't easy to face Juve, who are a very strong side, especially in attack," he said.

"I have to compliment my players.

"We defended very well but in the end we gave away the equaliser.

"It's a pity that we could not hold on for the win but I'm nevertheless satisfied with my team's performance."

Juve host Bologna this weekend while Genoa travel to the Stadio Friuli to meet Udinese.

Leonardo confident of turnaround

AC Milan coach Leonardo is confident his side can turn around their stuttering form when they take on promoted side Bari at the San Siro on Sunday.

Their 1-0 defeat to Udinese in midweek meant the club dropped to 11th in the Serie A standings with just seven points collected in five games.

Lack of goalscoring has hindered the Rossoneri, who have struck just three times this campaign.

"What we are missing is the final touch," said Leonardo.

"We must work on movements, on our speed regarding the final manoeuvre.

"I am confident because we control possession and the players are well positioned on the pitch.

"It's early days regarding the standings, so the problem is not how many points we have collected after five games but that we must start scoring more."

The Rossoneri will be put to the test as Bari have one of the best defensive lines in the competition, having given away four goals.

Unbeaten Inter Milan, who are six points clear of the Rossoneri, go into Saturday's clash at Sampdoria inspired by their midweek triumph over Napoli.

The Nerazzurri won 3-1 to temporarily take command of Serie A although they could slip to second if Juventus beat Genoa on Thursday.

Inter welcome back coach Jose Mourinho, who served a touchline ban on Wednesday.

Juventus will be bolstered by the return of star players Diego and Alessandro del Piero for Sunday's game against Bologna.

Both players have recovered from their respective injuries that saw them miss their team's last two encounters.

Red-hot Parma look to make it three wins in a row when they take on Chievo at the Ennio Tardini stadium.

The Ducale club are currently fifth in the standings having collected 10 points out of a possible 15 since gaining promotion to the top flight this summer.

Napoli seek home comfort when they host Siena on Sunday, with the Partenopei having lost all of their three games on the road this campaign while they remain unbeaten at the San Paolo stadium.

Udinese will rely on in-form striker Antonio di Natale to again come up with the goods when they welcome Genoa to Friuli this weekend.

Serie A's top scorer Di Natale took his tally to seven for the season by scoring the only goal of the game against AC Milan on Wednesday.

Lazio coach Davide Ballardini takes on his former club Palermo when the two sides meet at Rome's Stadio Olimpico this weekend.

Ballardini guided Palermo to an eighth-placed finish last season before joining Lazio this summer.

The Biancoceleste are desperate to return to winning ways having collected just one point in their last three games.

Roma, who are level on seven points with neighbours Lazio, make the journey to Sicily to face Catania.

Fiorentina look to pick up where they left off in Wednesday's 2-0 triumph over Sampdoria when they make the short journey to face Livorno in a Tuscan showdown.

Bottom side Atalanta will be desperate to end their winless run on the road when they travel to Verona to meet Chievo.

The Bergamaschi have not won on their travels since April 26 when they edged Lazio 1-0 in Rome.

Achille Emana has committed his future to Real Betis following fresh transfer speculation.

The Cameroon international was linked with a move away from Spain over the summer following Betis' relegation from the Primera Liga.

A switch to England was widely touted, with a number of clubs reported to be tracking his availability.

No move materialised but speculation has once again suggested that Premier League sides could move for Emana in January, with Bolton and Blackburn said to be weighing up bids in Janaury.

The combative midfielder met with Betis president Jose Leon this week in an effort to clarify his situation and insists he is now prepared to remain at the club.

"The rumours are over," he said.

"I have spoken with the club and we have decided to continue with our relationship.

"I am determined to help Real Betis return to the Primera Liga.

"Everyone is pulling in the same direction and I am very happy with this decision."

Emana admits he was contacted by interested parties over the summer, but claims none of the offers of the table were tempting enough to lure him away from Betis.

"I did receive a number of offers from foreign clubs, but they were not interesting enough for me to make a change," he said.

Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Roberto has urged his team-mates to dig deep and produce a result at Valencia as they try desperately to turn their season around.

Los Rojiblancos are in something of a crisis following a dreadful start to the season and coach Abel Resino is clinging on to his job by an ever-thinning thread.

There were calls for his dismissal during Wednesday's home draw with Almeria which left them second from bottom of the Primera Division table.

Atletico travel to Valencia, for a match which is a must-win affair for both teams, looking for their first away points of the season and Roberto knows just how much the three points would mean.

"The team really needs a victory," he said.

"We had it in the match against Almeria until they levelled in the final moment.

"We didn't expect that goal and it affects you in the hours after the game.

"Then, you get home, you go to sleep and you wake up with a different attitude, with a desire to train and move on.

"All of the team members look forward to coming to work and we're aware that we have the chance to win and resolve this situation every three days.

"Now we have to grit our teeth and fight to achieve our goals."

Raul Garcia, Mariano Pernia and Ignacio Camacho are injured, while Sergio Asenjo, Alvaro Dominguez and Leandro Cabrera have been called up to the Under-20 World Cup and are also missing.

Valencia have hit a bit of a slump of late following an impressive start to the season.

Los Che were one of four sides to win the opening two games and looked certain to make it three on the trot last weekend until surrendering a late goal at home to Sporting Gijon.

That disappointing 2-2 tie was then followed by a miserable 3-1 defeat at Getafe and Hedwiges Maduro is desperate to get back to winning ways at the Mestalla.

"Against Atletico we have to show intensity and motivation," he said.

"It's a good game to do that because we have to give a victory to our fans at home.

"We're all working to the maximum to achieve the three points.

"The only answer is to win, showing our qualities.

"Winning a game is not easy. But we have only just suffered our first defeat and it's not a problem.

"Now we all have to improve and learn from our mistakes. Wednesday's was an odd game but we have to face the next one and we will do it with great desire to win."

However, Unai Emery will be without Ruben Baraja, Angel Dealbert, Manuel Fernandes, Asier del Horno, Nacho Gonzalez and Vicente, who all look set to miss out through injury.

The Mestalla fans will be hoping David Villa continues his fantastic start to the season, with the Spain striker having scored five goals in four matches.

Madrid can get even better - Kaka

Playmaker Kaka claims Real Madrid still have room for improvement despite making it four league wins from four with their 2-0 triumph over Villarreal.

Kaka netted his first competitive goal for Madrid with a second-half penalty to help coach Manuel Pellegrini enjoy a happy return to the club he left in the summer and ensure the capital club continued their 100 per cent record.

Only Madrid and their arch rivals Barcelona have won each of their opening four matches and they already boast a three-point advantage over the rest of the division, and if that was not bad enough for the other teams, Kaka believes there is more to come from his side as well.

"I'm very happy with the win, although we can still improve. To play how we want takes time, but I think we are on the right path," he said.

Cristiano Ronaldo gave Madrid the perfect start at El Madrigal by netting in the opening two minutes for the second successive match, and that took his tally to seven goals in five league and Champions League fixtures this season.

Ronaldo's fellow summer signing Kaka has found it more difficult to get off the mark, but he finally managed it last night after taking over the penalty duties from Ronaldo to roll home his side's second goal against 10-man Villarreal.

"I'm happy to have scored my first goal. It's been a great joy and I think I'll score more, but the most important thing is that the team won," the Brazilian added.

"When I scored, all my team-mates congratulated me. This shows that this team is very united, and my joy is the joy of the whole team."

Ronaldo, who netted twice against Xerez at the weekend, is enjoying a great start to the campaign having found himself under the spotlight a few weeks ago after struggling to find his best form during pre-season.

His goal last night saw him enter into the Madrid record books as the first player to score in the club's first four league matches of a season, and he is currently level with Lionel Messi and David Villa at the top of the scoring charts.

It has been a great start for both Ronaldo and Madrid, although the Portugal winger admits it was not easy against Villarreal, despite the home side losing their captain Gonzalo Rodriguez to a red card midway through the first half.

"It was a very difficult game against an opponent who have caused us many problems," the Portugal international said.

"We were able to score in the opening minutes and this is always important, but the key thing is that we've been able to to take away the three points.

"We've had to work hard because they've put us under pressure from the start, but little by little we warmed up and we were able to play how we like."

Kaka netted his first competitive goal for Real Madrid and Cristiano Ronaldo was again on the mark as Manuel Pellegrini enjoyed a winning return to former club Villarreal.

Ronaldo, as he did against Xerez at the weekend, scored almost immediately after kick-off to give Madrid a flying start and then Kaka slotted home a second-half penalty to seal the Whites' fourth successive win of the season.

Villarreal had been reduced to 10 men by the time of that goal after captain Gonzalo Rodriguez had been sent off in 35th minute.

The Yellow Submarine were angered by that decision, and also by the penalty, but both stood and Ernesto Valverde's side are still looking for their first win of the season.

It is a different story for big-spending Madrid, who have enjoyed an almost perfect start under new coach Pellegrini, who left Villarreal this summer.

Ronaldo took less than a minute to break the deadlock in Sunday's 5-0 defeat of Xerez, and he needed just a few seconds longer to repeat the feat today.

A brilliant turn on the halfway line saw the Portugal international escape the attentions of marker Angel Lopez, and no Villarreal player could get close enough to put in a challenge as he raced towards the penalty area, stepped inside two defenders before drilling a low 20-yard shot past Diego Lopez.

It was a moment of magic from the FIFA World Player of the Year, who now has five goals in the league already, and sparked a first half which saw Madrid enjoy much the better of proceedings.

But, like Sunday's match, the Spanish giants found it difficult to build on their early lead, with Gonzalo Higuain the biggest culprit.

He saw one effort blocked following another good run by Ronaldo, before blazing a great chance over in front of goal after a slick move involving Guti, Kaka, Ronaldo and Marcelo had presented him with the opportunity.

Madrid then received a further boost in the 35th minute when Villarreal were reduced to 10 men.

Gonzalo, having been booked earlier for a foul on Ronaldo, was shown a second yellow after catching Kaka in the ribs as he attempted to clear the ball whilst grounded.

The Villarreal players were far from impressed by the decision, but they could do nothing about it and were left with an even bigger mountain to climb to get back into the game.

And that challenge could have been even greater if Ronaldo had managed to keep his volley down just before the break, with the ball flying just over the crossbar.

Villarreal, who had taken just two points from their opening three games, had it all to do to try and get back into the game after the break, but to be fair to Valverde's side they gave it a good go.

Giuseppe Rossi saw a tame shot saved by Iker Casillas before moments later seeing a much better effort parried by the Spain number one.

Santi Cazorla also went close twice as well, firing in a dipping 30-yard drive that just missed the top corner before bringing another save out of Casillas.

Amongst those chances Madrid came desperately close to doubling their lead, with Higuain denied by a mixture of Lopez and a goalline clearance by Angel, before Ronaldo saw his follow-up effort blocked by Lopez.

Higuain's night was to come to an end soon after that as he was replaced by captain Raul, who equalled Manuel Sanchis' club record of 524 league appearances when he entered the action, and soon afterwards Madrid were celebrating their second goal.

Once again the Villarreal players were left fuming at referee Manuel Mejuto Gonzalez following his decision to award a penalty against Angel after Marcelo's cross had struck the sliding full-back's arm.

The home side's protest fell on deaf ears again, though, and Kaka, taking over the penalty duties from Ronaldo, stepped up to roll home his maiden competitive goal for the club.

Ronaldo almost added a third when his 25-yard free-kick brought a good diving save out of Lopez, but it mattered little as the visitors comfortably saw out the remaining time to join La Liga leaders Barcelona on 12 points.

Andrea Della Valle steps down

Fiorentina have announced that Andrea Della Valle has stepped down as president of the club with immediate effect.

Andrea, brother of Fiorentina owner Diego Della Valle, took over the role in 2002, but faced criticism from the Viola fans for the club's lacklustre transfer activity this summer.

A statement from ACF Fiorentina read: "During today's Board meeting, Andrea Della Valle has announced his decision to leave the presidency of the club and his role will be temporarily covered by club vice-president Mario Cognigni."

Fiorentina sold Brazilian star Felipe Melo to Juventus this summer, a move which angered the Viola supporters, who were also displeased at them loaning Papa Waigo to Southampton.

The Florence-based outfit acquired midfielder Savio Nsereko as their main signing this summer from West Ham.

Fiorentina are fourth in the Serie A standings having collected 10 points out of a possible 15 so far.

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Sevilla rout Rangers at their own background

Inter Milan held in Russia

Woe for Naismith on Tuesday night

Arsenal record profits

Leonardo hoping for more backing

Juventus miss to grab the opporutnity to top the Serie A

Antonio Di Natale the man for Udinese

Its a team Game - Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Real Madrid keep up the good run in the league

Osasuna on the track beating Gijon

Three and easy for Real Zaragoza

Hoffenheim punish Hertha Berlin

Easy win for SC Freiburg

Hamburg regained top spot

Bordeaux keeps on marching the Ligue 1

Ajax keeps pace with leaders

C.Ancelotti thinks of long term at Chelsea

Paul Hart fearless about his job

There is still more to come - Fergie

Cesare wants Viola to be motivated

Dzeko linked with Milan again

Ciro Ferrara - We should have won

Leonardo confident of turnaround

Achille Emana to stay at Betis

Atletico coach Abel Resino is under pressure

Madrid can get even better - Kaka

Kaka scores debut goal for Real Madrid

Andrea Della Valle steps down

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