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Joe Cole out for season

CHELSEA have been rocked by the loss of England midfielder Joe Cole for the rest of the season.

Cole, 27, ruptured cruciate knee ligaments during the Blues’ 4-1 FA Cup triumph over Southend in midweek.

He underwent surgery in London yesterday morning and manager Luiz Felipe Scolari admitted: “It is a big disappointment and a big loss.”

The injury also rules Cole out of England’s friendlies against Spain and Slovakia, the World Cup qualifier against Ukraine in April and possibly the June qualifiers against Andorra and Kazakhstan.

Chelsea captain John Terry added: “We’re all gutted for him. We’re all behind Coley to get fit as soon as possible. No-one will be more hurt at missing games through injury than Joe.

"He’s going to be a big miss for us and I keep on saying he’s the one who really opens things up in tight moments."

Source:
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk

Specifications
Asus P552w

Network	2G 3G	GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900 HSDPA 2100
Size	Dimensions Weight Display	102 x 60.5 x 14.5 mm (4.02 x 2.38 x 0.57 in) 105 gram TFT resistive touchscreen, 65K colors 240 x 320 pixels (~143 ppi pixel density)
Memory	Phonebook Call records Internal Card slot	Yes Yes 128 MB RAM, 256 MB ROM microSD
Data	GPRS EDGE 3G WLAN Bluetooth Infrared port USB	Class 10 Class 10 HSPA 3.6/0.384 Mbps Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g v2.1 with A2DP microUSB v2.0
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Battery	Stand-by Talk time	Standard battery, Li-Ion 1100 mAh Up to 300 h Up to 5 h

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Kaka rejects City offer and stays at Milan

MILAN, Italy (AP)—Kaka decided to stay with AC Milan, ending talks over a record-breaking transfer bid from Manchester City reported to be worth $147 million.

“All the messages coming my way said to choose with my heart,” the 26-year-old Brazilian midfielder told Milan Channel on Monday night. “And at the end that’s what the choice was. It was absolutely not economical.”

Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, AC Milan’s owner, returned from Middle East peace talks in Egypt and met for 1 1/2 hours with team vice president Adriano Galliani, then made the announcement on Italian television.

“For Kaka, money isn’t everything,” Berlusconi said in a telephone interview with “Processo di Biscardi.” “When I heard he preferred to stay, that he hadn’t thought about losing a chance for a higher salary and that he put the values of the club, friendship and fans affection above all else, I said, `Come on,’ and we hugged.”

FIFA’s player of the year in 2007 after leading AC Milan to the European Champions League title, Kaka is under contract with the Italian club through 2013. His actual name is Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite.

“At the end what counted was my history, where my ties are and where my heart really lies,” he said.

Earlier, a group of about 500 fans protested outside Milan’s downtown offices, lighting flares and chanting “Don’t sell Kaka!”

Afterward, about 50 fans moved toward Kaka’s home and chanted, “Stay with us, Ricardo,” to which Kaka replied by approaching a window with a Milan jersey in hand and beat his hand three times on his heart, sending the fans into delirium, the ANSA news agency and Gazzetta dello Sport’s Web site reported.

Eventually, a worker at Kaka’s house went outside and asked the fans to quiet down because they were disturbing Kaka’s child. The fans said they would leave if they could see their idol once more. Kaka obliged and approached his window again and the fans left.

Manchester City was bought in August by an Abu Dhabi consortium and is seeking to become one of Europe’s top clubs.

“Following a meeting in Milan today, the club felt that it was unlikely that the two parties could reach common ground for an agreement,” City said. “The discussions reached only a preliminary stage and the player was not involved at any time. No commercial terms were framed.”

Source:
http://sports.yahoo.com

Brazilian stars stay put at Fenerbahçe

Fenerbahçe SK captain Alex and left-back Roberto Carlos have both signed contract extensions to prolong their stays at the Istanbul club.

Agreements
Former Brazil skipper Alex, 31, has agreed a two-year deal with the option for a further 12 months, having won two championships with the Turkish club since switching from Cruzeiro EC in 2004. Meanwhile the 35-year-old Roberto Carlos, who joined in 2007 after eleven seasons at Real Madrid CF, has committed for the 2009/10 campaign after activating a clause in his contract. Both players helped Fenerbahçe to the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals last term – the club's best performance in the competition. This year the Istanbul giants are out of Europe and fourth in the Süper Lig, though only two points off the lead, ahead of their campaign resumption at home to second-placed Trabzonspor on Sunday.

Chung to step down as head of SKorean soccer

SEOUL, South Korea (AP)—FIFA vice president Chung Mong-joon is stepping down as president of the Korea Soccer Association.

Chung, who has led the organization since 1993, said he would not seek a fifth re-election this week. The legislator and businessman did not give a reason for the decision.

“I’ve experienced many breathless moments over the last 16 years” as president, he said on the association’s Web site.

Chung is widely credited with broadening the sport’s exposure at home and promoting South Korean players abroad. He oversaw the 2002 World Cup, co-hosted by South Korea and Japan.

Candidates in the running to replace him in Thursday’s vote include Cho Joong-yun, the association’s vice president, and Heo Seung-pyo, who ran against Chung for the KSA presidency in 1997.

“I hope that someone who really loves football, someone who has the administrative experience and capacity to promote football, will be elected,” Chung said in a statement.

His FIFA term lasts until 2011.

Source:
http://sports.yahoo.com

Ancelotti says he hopes Kaka will stay at Milan

By Jeremy Inson, Associated Press Writer

Carnago, Italy—AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti hopes Kaka will stay at the team “for many more years,” but confirmed the club is considering the world record offer from Manchester City.

“I think there are dealings under way, and therefore it’s something the club is going to have to do together with the player,” Ancelotti said Friday. “My hope is to be able to coach Kaka for many more years, but we’ve got to be aware of the facts and the club’s evaluation of the offer presented.”

City’s offer for the 26-year-old midfielder, FIFA’s 2007 player of the year, is reportedly worth up to up to $157 million.

Kaka did not stop to speak with reporters at practice, only offering a brief wave. He said Wednesday he wants to “grow old” at Milan, but his spokesman, Diogo Kotscho, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the player will listen to City’s proposals.

A group of about 70 fans gathered outside Milan’s downtown offices Friday evening to protest against a move, shouting “Don’t sell Kaka! Don’t sell Kaka!” A firecracker thrown by the fans exploded near a garage a few minutes before Milan vice president Adriano Galliani exited, according to the ANSA news agency.

Source:
http://sports.yahoo.com

Federer wins Aust. Open tuneup event at Kooyong

By John Pye, AP Sports Writer

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP)— Roger Frederer crushed Olympic gold medal-winning doubles partner Stanislas Wawrinka on Saturday to win the Australian Open tuneup event at Kooyong.

Federer, one away from equaling Pete Sampras’ record 14 Grand Slam titles, broke Wawrinka’s serve three times in the first seven games and downed his Swiss compatriot 6-1, 6-3 win in just 57 minutes.

Federer earned his second title at the eight-man exhibition tournament. He won the Kooyong title in 2005, the year he lost in the Australian Open semifinals to eventual champion Marat Safin.

With the Australian Open starting Monday, he didn’t want to waste a minute of preparation time for the season’s first major.

“New season, big opportunities for me,” Federer said. “I’m chasing a lot of records.”

Federer had three wins in the eight-man draw this week and said he saved his best for last, ripping some trademark backhand winners down the line and rarely letting Wawrinka get into the points.

“Sorry Stan!” he said. “It’s a wonderful preparation for the Australian Open. I’m excited. … It was serious, not crazy serious. We have to be tough against each other, but we played some great tennis.”

Federer and his Davis Cup teammate frequently hit together and the No. 2-ranked Federer considers himself a mentor and “like a brother” to Wawrinka.

At Kooyong, he taught 23-year-old Wawrinka that he doesn’t believe in friendly matches, even at exhibition tournaments.

“It’s nice to play him. We played next to each other. Now he’s on the other side,” he said. “I wanted to see how much he’s improved.”

The second-ranked Federer was entered but withdrew from the Kooyong tournament last year while struggling with mononucleosis.

He was beaten in the semifinals of the Australian Open by eventual champion Novak Djokovic, ending his streak of 19 straight match wins at Melbourne Park. He is 31-2 since the 2004 Australian Open, which was the second of his 13 major titles.

“This time is different. I’ve played plenty of matches. Also played Doha,” he said. “Last year was just a matter of playing the tournament. This time I’m trying to win it.”

Federer has a tough draw at the season’s first Grand Slam event, opening against Andreas Seppi of Italy, then possible matches against former No. 1 Carlos Moya in the second round, Safin in the third and Wawrinka in the fourth. Another semifinal against Djokovic looms.

When the possible fourth-round match up was mentioned Saturday, Federer and Wawrinka, sitting side-by-side at the trophy presentation, looked at each other, smiled and nodded.

Rafael Nadal, who ended Federer’s 237-week streak at No. 1 last season after beating him in the French Open and Wimbledon finals, is on the other side of the draw, along with Britain’s Andy Murray.

In the third-place match at Kooyong, Spaniard Fernando Verdasco had a 6-4, 6-3 win over second-seeded Fernando Gonzalez of Chile.

Gonzalez has one of the toughest opening-round matches at the Australian Open, which starts Monday, facing local favorite and former top-ranked Lleyton Hewitt.