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| 31 December 2003 Ancelotti Cliams To Be Ideal Replacement For Trap Milan's Carlo Ancelotti feels he has all the qualifictations to succeed Trap as Italy coach : "I would be the ideal replacement for Giovanni Trapattoni at the helm of the Italy squad. I have all the right qualifications and a similar tactical outlook but I have no intention of leaving Milan." Parma Delay Bankruptcy Parma have staved off bankruptcy for a week by delaying a board meeting. President Calisto Tanzi is in a Milan prison and the company are now thought to be a massive €10 billion in debt. The club need to raise €38 million in order to see out the season. A large percentage of this money is expected to be raised by the sale of Adriano with Alberto Gilardino, Daniele Bonera, Marco Marchionni and Sebastien Frey also rumoured to be sold. Hidetoshi Nakata is expected to complete a move to Bologna shortly. Lippi To See Out Juve Contract Marcello Lippi has ruled himself out of coaching the Italian national team after Euro 2004 : "It would be an honour to take charge of the Azzurri but I have an agreement with Juventus until 2005. I'm not leaving this club before then. The only way that would occur is if they decided to sack me. I've been here for eight years and I want to win the Scudetto and the Champions League yet again." 30 December 2003 Capello Not Interested In Natioanal Team Vacancy Roma's Fabio Capello says he has no interest in succeeding Giovanni Trapattoni as national team coach in the summer : "I would prefer a last beautiful experience abroad. The national team for now is not an experience that stimulates me a lot, as I would only have to be a selector rather than a coach." 29 December 2003 Parma club patron Calisto Tanzi has been arrested for his part in the Parmalat scandal. The company has been declared baknrupt after €3.7 million went missing from their bank accounts. 28 December 2003 Another Unwanted Award For Rivaldo Italian magazine Max have awarded Rivaldo the Wooden Ball - as the worst player in Serie A of the past year. The journalists wrote : "ET came to Italy as world champion and left after just one disastrous season towards less prestigious shores." Lazio's Sergio Conceicao finished second and Gabriel Batistuta, now playing in the UAE, finished third. 27 December 2003 Parma Face Liquidation A week after claiming the clubs majority shareholders financial problems would not effect them, Parma director general Patrick Nebiolo says the club face liquidation unless they receive an injection of funds by the 31st of December : "The club's losses must be covered and the capital increased during the shareholders meeting. Parmalat are unable to introduce fresh funds but they can convert credits into capital. If that doesn't happen then the alternative is liquidation. This is a crisis point for the Gialloblu as the football club risks going under along with majority shareholders Parmalat." Parmalat were declared insolvent after €3.7 million went 'missing' from their bank accounts. Parmalat President Stefano Tanzi and patron Calisto Tanzi are both under investigation for fraud. L'Equipe's Team of 2003 L'Equipe, sister magazine of France Football, have picked the following players in their team of 2003 : Buffon (Juventus), Thuram (Juventus), Nesta (Milan), Maldini (Milan), Roberto Carlos (Real Madrid), Makelele (Chelsea), Beckham (Real Madrid), Zidane (Real Madrid), Nedved (Juventus), Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Henry (Arsenal) Lippi Wants Italy Job Marcello Lippi has revealed that he would like to succeed Giovanni Trapattoni as coach of Italy once Trap's contract expires after Euro 2004 : "To be in charge of the Nazionale is a fascinating proposition. Of course I would love to take this post but I cannot at this precise moment say where my future will be. 23 December 2003 Teenage Duo Given Lengthy Ban Two players who failed drug tests at the 2003 World Youth Championships have been given lengthy bans by FIFA. Egyptian Amir Azmy was banned for fourteen months and German Alexander Walke was banned for seven months. Azmy tested positive for the anabolic agent nandrolone and suspended until February 2005 while Walke tested positive for cannabis and is suspended until 8 July 2008. A FIFA statement read : "In each case the suspension covers all types of matches including domestic, international, friendly and official fixtures. An appeal may be lodged against these decisions to the FIFA Appeal Committee within three days of receipt of the reasoned decision to be sent subsequently." Totti - Nedved Didn't Deserve Award Bitter Roma captain Francesco Totti has reacted angrily to Nedved being crowned European footballer of the year : "Nedved did not deserve the award from France Football. Someone else should have won it, someone who entertains. I did not win it, but I don't put myself down, I charge myself more." Pirlo Not Fazed By Penalty Misses Milan midfielder Andrea Pirlo maintains he will continue taking penalties despite recent misses against Boca Juniors and Udinese. Pirlo, who had a 100% success rate from the spot last season, said : "I'm not a robot. These things happen although I was obviously upset with the mistakes but I won't give up taking them. I'm not the first man ever to miss a penalty. If the likes of Michel Platini and Diego Maradona can miss, then I certainly can. You can practice them all week but at the end of the day it all comes down to how you feel when you step up there. Sometimes you walk up there and the goal looks very small, especially when you are playing for an important trophy." Birgit Prinz Rejects Perugia Offer FIFA women's footballer of the year, Birgit Prinz, has rejected a €1 million offer to join Perugia : "I have made my decision. I just love playing football too much to risk spending time in a men's team and only getting a few minutes playing time at the most." Gracious Nedved Wins Ballon D'Or After being crowned European Footballer of the Year, Pavel Nedved graciously said he felt Arsenal front man Thierry Henry was the best forward in the World and deserved the award : "For me Thierry Henry is the best forward in the world now. I am very happy. I did not think I would beat Thierry Henry, Paolo Maldini or Zinedine Zidane and if I had voted I would have voted for Thierry and for the other players on the podium. I am very happy for myself, my wife, my children and country but I don't know how I beat Thierry Henry or Zinedine Zidane." 22 December 2003 Meyer New Coach Of Hertha Former Borussia Moenchengladbach coach Hans Meyer has succeeded Huub Stevens at coach of Hertha Berlin. Stevens was sacked after poor results and the club also got rid of caretaker coach Andreas Thom. Ferdinand Banned For 8 Months Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has been banned for 8 months after failing to show up at a drugs test in September. Manchester United's stalling tactics and pressure from FIFA and the WADA (World Anti Doping Authority) are thought to be the reason for the lengthy ban. The ban rules Rio Ferdinand out of Euro 2004 and takes effect from early January. 18 December 2003 Gattuso Ridicules FIFA Award Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso feels Real Madrid midfielder Zinedine Zidane didn't deserve to win the FIFA World player of the year award : "With all respect to Zidane, who is without doubt one of the best players in the world, if I look at his season I think to myself so what? If the prize is going to be handed out solely on the basis of talent then Diego Maradona should have won it every single year he was playing." Gattuso thought Milan team-mate Paolo Maldini and Juventus midfielder Pavel Nedved were more deserving after helping their clubs reach the European Cup final. Gattuso echoed the commonly held belief that many of the coaches are simply not qualified to vote. Speaking of the only coach who voted him as his player of the year (from the Caribbean islands Turks and Caicos) : "What do these coaches base their judgements on? I went there once on holiday with Christian Vieri. Maybe this guy saw me having a kick around on the beach and liked what he saw but does it seem possible to you that I got one vote and Totti didn't get any? These prizes don't have credibility anymore. They have more to do with sponsors than real values and results on the pitch". Boca Reject €14 Million Bid For Tevez Boca Juniors president Mauricio Macri has rejected a big money offer for star player Carlos Tevez : "Bayern Munich made us an official offer for Tevez while we had to stop in Italy from our trip back from Japan. They have offered us €14 million but I must say that Boca will not sell Tevez at the moment. Despite the fact that we could make our club's financial situation even better than how it is at this moment, we want to keep the player for longer. Tevez is the clearest talent that Argentinean football has produced since Diego Maradona. This is something that will surely be confirmed in the next two years." The player is happy to stay in Argentina : "If Macri makes sure that he makes my family live in a good way in the future I prefer not to be transferred, ever. I would stay forever at Boca but the club has to confirm to me that my family will always have everything they need." Torres Signs Up For Another 5 Years Atletico Madrid striker Fernando Torres has signed a new contract with Atletico Madrid that will keep him at the club until 2008. Torres has been linked with a move to Milan. Del Piero Unhappy On The Bench Juve's Alessandro Del Piero has spoken of his annoyance at being benched in recent weeks after the clubs successive league defeats following his return to the side thus breaking up the excellent partnership of Di Vaio and Trezeguet : "Sitting on the bench makes me angry. That's because I can't contribute to the side. I get injured at least once a year and it takes time for me to get back to my best however, I'm now back and I hope to be fundamental for my club again. I don't want to spend any more time on the treatment table this season." 17 December 2003 European Union Agree Compromise With BSkyB BSkyB have reached an agreement with the European Union over broadcastings rights to English Premiership matches. The EU felt BSkyB had a monopoly on live football. From next season 8 matches featuring 'top clubs' will be broadcast live on terrestrial TV with more planned when BSkyB's current deal expires in 2007. Racing Santander Docked A Point Spanish club Racing Santander have been docked a point by the Spanish FA for fielding too many non EU players during the 0-0 draw against Osasuna last week. The club have also been fined €3,000 and coach Lucas Alcaraz has been banned for one month. Parma Will Not Be Forced To Sell Parma's director general Patrick Nebiolo claims the club will not be forced to sell the clubs star players despite the financial crisis surrounding owners Parmalat : "Parma are not a supermarket for other sides. We are already two years into a three-year project that had as its objective financial independence from the Parmalat group. We are self sufficient and do not depend on their finances. The only sales that will take place are those that the club have already planned." |