15 April 2005 UEFA Hand Inter Record Fine & Stadium Ban An official statement from UEFA read : "UEFA's Control and Disciplinary Body has ordered FC Internazionale Milano to play their next six European club competition matches behind closed doors as a result of the disturbances at the abandoned UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg against AC Milan on Tuesday." "Of these six matches, the last two are under a probationary period of three years according to Article 15 bis of the disciplinary regulations. This means that if a further offence is committed during the probationary period, the disciplinary body may order the original sanction to be executed, in addition to disciplinary sanctions for the second offence." Inter have also been fined €194,000. Milan have been awarded the second leg 0-3 and go through '5-0' on aggregate. UEFA spokesman Rob Faulkner added : "The decision taken by the Control and Disciplinary Body sends out a message to all those in football and football fans that this kind of behaviour at European matches under UEFA jurisdiction is something that will not be tolerated. The scenes that we saw on Tuesday which led to the interruption of the match due to fans' misbehaviour is not the kind of thing that UEFA wants to see." Juve Fan Jailed Swimming pool lifeguard Andrea Tommolini has been handed an 8 month prison sentence after being found guilty of throwing missiles at Liverpool supporters before Wednesday's Champions League clash with Juventus. Tammolini denies the charges and plans an appeal. His lawyer said : "He says he was mistaken for somebody else in all the confusion and also because of the pink shirt which is worn by a lot of ultra tifosi. It's not normal to refuse someone who has no previous record a suspended sentence. I think the judge wanted to set an example." Kahn and Sagnol Cut Promos on Each Other Bayern Munich goalkeeper Oliver Khan and defender Willy Sagnol have blamed each other for the clubs Champions League exit against Chelsea. Kahn criticised Sagnol for failing to close down Joe Cole before he crossed for Drogba to head in what proved to be the crucial goal : "You have to ask how much time did the Chelsea player have to make a pass leading up to the goal that took the score to 1-2. The last time I saw a player keep the ball for half an hour was in a seniors match." Sagnol hit back in style : "I couldn't even begin to give you a quick rundown of the mistakes Kahn's made in the past two or three weeks because I'm on my way to training, it would take me ten days to go through them." Santos Claim Robinho is Straying Put Santos chairman Marcelo Teixeira claims that star player Robinho will not leave the club before the 2006 World Cup. Real Madrid claim to have already signed the player for €18 million : "I'm pleased to be able to announce that Robinho is staying with Santos. It's a present for the fans." 14 April 2005 Robert Launches ill Timed Attack on Newcastle Newcastle winger Laurent Robert has been dropped from the squad to face Sporting in the 2nd leg of the club's UEFA Cup quarter-final after making the following comments in an interview : "Are we better this year than last year? No, I don't think so. Are we the same? No, probably worse. We have not played well in the last three games. We've been very, very bad. It is difficult to explain why we are playing so badly, but we have to get out of it quickly." Coach Graham Souness accused the player of being selfish : "We've had to take our eyes off the ball because of the selfish attitude of one of our own players. Once again, we've been sidetracked by a selfish player at a time when this club is playing its two most important games for 35 years. That is totally unacceptable, not only for the management team of Newcastle United and its players, but also the supporters. These two games (UEFA Cup and FA Cup tie against Manchester United) are not about Laurent Robert, they are not about Alan Shearer or Graeme Souness either, they are about the cause, and that cause is Newcastle United. What Laurent Robert has to do is to look at himself first and if he is not playing well, he should try harder." New Measures Announced in Crackdown on Violence The Interior Ministry announced new measures in a bid to crackdown on fan violence following the shameful incidents at the San Siro on Tuesday. Games will now be abandoned if objects are thrown onto the stands and the team whose fans commit the offence will be handed a 3-0 defeat. Police have also been ordered to stop games if there are disturbances outside stadiums. Franco Carraro, president of the FIGC (Italian FA) said : "It's important that football clubs increase their co-operation with forces of order and increase dialogue with supporters. We have the desire that this season's championships can end in a climate of peace and harmony. We are in a very delicate situation and we needed an emergency solution. We hope that these measures won't need to be taken but they will if necessary." Palermo president and league Vice-president Maurizio Zamparini questioned the logic behind the measures : "Carraro's decision has surprised me. He is an intelligent person but he will soon realise that he can't give one fan the power to stop a match simply because his side is losing." 13 April 2005 Tuesday's Actions Planned Sources close to the Curva Nord, the section from which missiles and flares rained down on Dida and the Milan goal, claim the European derby was a predetermined protest at Inter owner Massimo Moratti. Dida Calls For Tougher Laws "We all want a more beautiful game. A sport in which all that fans thought about was supporting their own team. If someone introduced real laws that would stop such incidents then things would be a lot better. I'm feeling well. I have a slight burn but I'll be available for the weekend. I was in great pain and I did go to hospital just to make sure that there was nothing serious." 12 April 2005 Journalist Explains Problems With Italian Game Giancarlo Galavotti who writes for highly respected Italian newspaper Gazzetta Dello Sport explained why it will be difficult to clean-up the Italian game : "It must be the time for Italian authorities and indeed for UEFA to ban Inter Milan to stop the clubs from playing if their fans or section of their fans behave in such a dangerous way. The problems are multi-faceted because our stadia in Italy are not built the way that all the Premier League stadia were built after Hillsborough so we don't have all seater stadia, we have still a superficial control both at the entrances and indeed we don't have closed circuit television. Really we are a long way behind but as I say we have to stop and start being civilised and behave following the English example as quickly as possible." A Night of Shame - Reactions to European Milan Derby Carlo Ancelotti : "It was an unexpected reaction from the fans, as I've played in a dozen derbies and never seen anything like this. It is a terrible blow to the city of Milan, which has always shown great sportsmanship. We should certainly put more power in the hands of the security forces, but above all it is a question of culture, we don't talk about sport in television these days, it's just refereeing errors and stirring up tension. Nonetheless, here were no warning signs, as the fans in Milan make fun of each other, but it never goes beyond that." Andriy Shevchenko : "I am very sorry and there's nothing more we can say. It's a real shame for Inter, as I don't know what sanctions they will face and it ruined a very good game. I'm sure the majority of the crowd did not want it to end this way, but a few individuals are hard to reach  and determined to cause trouble. All the players can do is act in a sporting manner on the pitch." Clarence Seedorf : "I hope the memory of this game isn't cancelled out, as we need to start immediately and teach people how to watch football. Dida is doing alright and is a little sore where he was struck, but he will be fine. I was talking with Esteban Cambiasso and told him that I understand the moments of stress, especially when you're losing, but players have to lead by example and not go outside the realm of respectability when something doesn't go your way." 11 April 2005 Lazio President Distances himself from Fascists Lazio president Claudio Lotito has tried to distance the club from fans who held aloft a banner that read 'Fascist Rome' and chanted right wing slogans during the teams 3-1 victory over Livorno : "Sport must not take up political positions. As a club we bear no responsibility. With the minute's silence in memory of the Pope the club demonstrated it does not have a political position but rather has tried to instil morals and the rediscovery of authentic and spiritual values. The responsibility (for the chanting) is ours only if we do nothing to stop them. We can't put a police officer on every fan." Big Mouth Eto'o out for 10 Days Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o will be out of action for 10 days after sustaining a knee injury during Sunday's 4-2 defeat against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. When Beckham joined Real Madrid Eto'o claimed Beckham was prettier and only signed to sell shirts but he was the better player. Beckham was the man of the match in yesterday's top of the table clash, making two goals and denying Eto'o a certain goal with a superbly timed tackle in the box. 10 April 2005 Mourinho Lays into Pundits "The best job in the world is to be a sacked coach You get up at 10.30am, take breakfast, go for a jog followed by a sauna and a calm surf of sporting sites on the net. Lunch with friends, a siesta, a walk, a meeting with your adviser to see how the markets are doing, a visit to the bank to weigh up the interest rates, or to see if the salary the club is still paying you has cleared the account. Return home, have a great meal with the family. That still leaves you time to criticise people you don't know. There are so many coaches in this world who want to work but can't and there are those dashing blades who, through their quality and prestige, could work but don't want to, because life as a parasite fulfils them professionally and economically. Get to work you idle scoundrel! And if you don't want to, let others work in peace." Jose Mourinho