Galliani rules out Pato transfer

Adriano Galliani locked down Alexandre Pato and claimed Milan’s Scudetto showdown with Napoli is “very important, but not decisive.”

The Rossoneri are still top of the Serie A table and go head-to-head with second-placed Napoli on Monday night.

“This match will be very important, but not decisive,” insisted the Milan Vice-President.

Galliani also commented on reports that young striker Pato would be sacrificed over the summer transfer market to bring in reinforcements.

“The Brazilian is essential for Milan and will absolutely remain here,” he told Sky Sport Italia.

There has been a hat-trick of home defeats for Italian sides in the first leg of the Champions League ties, but the former Lega Calcio chief is keeping calm.

“It will be difficult for all three teams, but we must not all is lost already.”

Milan lost 1-0 to Tottenham and Inter fell by the same scoreline to Bayern Munich, while Roma were defeated 3-2 by Shakhtar Donetsk.

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Cassano: 'Cavani like Ibrahimovic? It's a joke!'

Antonio Cassano laughs off comparisons between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani. “Let’s not joke around. Ibra is on another level.”

Monday’s big match sees leaders Milan welcome second place Napoli in a Scudetto clash and Cassano gave a long interview to the Corriere dello Sport in preparation.

“Are we under pressure from Napoli? No, here at Milan the only pressure is our blood pressure,” smiled the striker.

“I don’t care what Inter and Napoli want. I do not fear anybody. This Milan is not afraid and it shouldn’t be, as it is the strongest team, without doubt.”

When asked who was the better player right now between Ibrahimovic and top scorer Cavani, Cassano had no hesitation.

“Let’s not joke around, what kind of a question is that? Cavani is a good player, but he reminds me of Igor Protti at Bari. He needs to be more consistent. Ibrahimovic is on another level.

“The best I ever played with was Ronaldo, followed by Zinedine Zidane, then Ibra and Francesco Totti on a par.”

There are reports Cassano will be dropped for Monday’s game in favour of Alexandre Pato, who scored a sensational goal against Chievo.

“Pato is the absolute best and I told him that. Only Leo Messi is better and the two together would be incredible to watch. I immediately got along with Ibrahimovic, as me and Zlatan are two totally crazy guys, so we are similar. Pato is more of a little boy and quite shy.”

Cassano joined Milan during the January transfer window after two months frozen out of Sampdoria following a blazing row with President Riccardo Garrone.

“Looking back to what happened four months ago, I would pay out of my own pocket to avoid the mistake I made with Garrone. He was the person who showed me the most affection in the football world and he really didn’t deserve what I did to him.”

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Hamsik: 'AC Milan are not unbeatable'

Marek Hamsik is fired up for the Scudetto duel with on Monday, even if he plays down Napoli’s title chances. “Milan are not at all unbeatable.”

The second placed side pay visit to the Serie A leaders and only three points separate them going into the game

“There’s no point denying it, a large chunk of the Scudetto is in the balance on Monday night,” Hamsik told the Corriere dello Sport.

“However, we are certainly not there to gamble with the title. Milan are in front, we are three points behind, so they are the ones with more to lose. Of course, if we should win at San Siro, then there would be 11 games to go and we’d be on level terms...

“In that case, the Scudetto odds would be on Milan and Inter. As for Napoli, I’d be happy with third of fourth place.

“The Rossoneri may be favourites for Monday’s match, but they are not at all uneatable. In our last meeting at the San Paolo we played well despite going through half the game with 10 men and could even have equalised.”

Much has been said in the media about the duel between Edinson Cavani and Zlatan Ibrahimovic for the Capocannoniere title.

“This season Cavani has been the best player in Serie A, but if Ibra has won the title wherever he went over the last seven years, there must be a reason,” noted Hamsik.

The Partenopei are still smarting after their 2-1 defeat at Villarreal signalled the end of the Europa League course.

“We were defeated by a great squad, but did not deserve to go out of the competition. We proved we can play in such important games and thanks to that will now be even more aware of our capabilities.”

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Rosberg fastest on rain-hit final day

Nico Rosberg put his Mercedes at the top of the timesheets as pre-season running for the 2011 season came to an end at the Ciruit de Catalunya on Saturday. The German driver put in a late effort to narrowly beat the FW33 of Pastor Maldonado, who had been the pace-setter for much of the afternoon session in Barcelona.

After most of the field packed up to prepare for the first race in Melbourne last night, McLaren, Ferrari, Williams and Mercedes were the four teams who remained on-track for a final day of testing in Spain. Hispania Racing was set to debut its new F111 today, but had to cancel its plans when key car components were not allowed through Spanish customs.

Heavy overnight rain had drenched the surroundings of Montmeló ahead of the final day of running, with torrential conditions failing to ease off during the early hours. As the session officially got underway, surface water made any true running impossible, with only installation laps taking place during the first few hours.

Lewis Hamilton was the only man to complete a flying lap before the lunch break, with the McLaren driver posting a time of 1:57.765 during a sequence of laps in his MP4-26. It was not until the middle of the afternoon until the Briton improved however, taking over ten seconds off his previous best lap-time, setting a 1:47.304 to move further ahead as the rain continued to fall.

Hamilton was eventually joined by two of the other three drivers out on track today, with Maldonado climbing to the top of the timesheets. After a string of laps the GP2 graduate consolidated his position with an effort of 1:46.157. Rosberg quickly joined the pair on the timing screens in his newly-updated MGP-W02, circulating exactly 1.6 seconds slower than Maldonado.

Rosberg took over from team-mate Michael Schumacher for the afternoon session, and went on to edge out Maldonado in a last gasp effort. Despite the conditions masking drivers' pace even further today, Mercedes will leave Barcelona in a more positive mood than it arrived, with its drivers topping the timesheets on the final two days of running.

With the pre-season testing period now over, all attentions will turn towards the Australian Grand Prix in a fortnight's time. HRT will once again arrive at the opening race with no prior running of its car, with the outfit's 2011 challenger set to be driven for the first time during Friday practice in Melbourne.

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Williams confirms KERS for Melbourne

Williams has revealed that it will be using KERS during the season-opening Grand Prix of the year in Melbourne, with the team opting to stick with its unit despite early teething problems in testing. The Grove-based outfit announced the news on Saturday, with the final pre-season test coming to a close at Barcelona.

Rubens Barrichello and Pastor Maldonado have both endured KERS related technical troubles behind the wheel of the newly-designed FW33, but Williams is confident that no such issues should occur when the upcoming Formula 1 campaign gets underway on the weekend of March 25-27.

According to Williams' official Twitter feed, Technical Director Sam Michael was working at Grove to asses the situation, and has since decided to use the system in Australia: "Reviewed KERS problem and good news is that we'll be racing KERS in Melbourne."

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Formula One boss wants Bahrain protests to 'blow away'

AP - Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone is hoping deadly anti-government protests will cease so the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix can go ahead as scheduled.

Ecclestone says a decision over the March 13 opener will come next week with the race in risk of becoming the first one canceled in F1 history.

Ecclestone says, "Our people there say, 'It's quiet, no problems.' I'm more hopeful today... Let's hope this all blows away.'' Ecclestone's comments came as Bahrain security forces fired more tear gas on protest marchers in Manama on Friday.

So far, five people are reported dead and at least 230 wounded from the Egypt-style protests following a brutal crackdown Thursday on a protest encampment in Manama.

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Unrest forces cancellation of Bahraini opening Grand Prix

AFP - The season-opening Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix, due to be staged on March 13, was cancelled on Monday due to the deadly political unrest in the Gulf state, organisers announced.

The widely anticipated move was confirmed in an official statement shortly after reports emerged that F1 teams had decided not to go ahead with a scheduled testing session at the circuit next week.

Bahrain Crown Prince HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa said: "At the present time the country's entire attention is focused on building a new national dialogue for Bahrain.

"Although (F1 rights holder) Bernie Ecclestone had graciously made clear that a decision on the race was entirely Bahrain's to make and was not yet required, we felt it was important for the country to focus on immediate issues of national interest and leave the hosting of Bahrain's Formula 1 race to a later date."

The 2011 season will now get underway with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 27.

No date has been set for a possible rescheduling of the Bahrain race, which was first held in 2004 when Michael Schumacher won, later in the year.

Ecclestone, who has been in constant contact with organisers over the race's fate, gave his reaction.

The F1 chief said: "It is sad that Bahrain has had to withdraw from the race, we wish the whole nation well as they begin to heal their country.

"The hospitality and warmth of the people of Bahrain is a hallmark of the race there, as anyone who has been at a Bahrain Grand Prix will testify. We look forward to being back in Bahrain soon."

Prince Salman in his statement added: "After the events of the past week, our nation's priority is on overcoming tragedy, healing divisions and rediscovering the fabric that draws this country together; reminding the world of the very best that Bahrain is capable of as a nation once again united."

Circuit chairman Zayed Alzayani expressed the hope of restaging the race.

"Bahrain's Grand Prix is a time of celebration and hosting the race is a source of great pride for Bahrain and Bahrainis," he said.

"It is a showcase to the world and we look forward to welcoming the teams and drivers and everyone involved in Formula One back to Bahrain in the very near future.

"I hope that F1 and our friends around the world will understand our decision at this difficult time."

Monday's announcement follows the cancellation of last weekend's GP2 Series race in Bahrain after pro-democracy protests that have led to deadly clashes with police.

The unrest in the small Gulf state of Bahrain is part of a wave of protests that have rippled across North Africa and the Middle East since the revolt that ousted Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January.

There had been unease in the pits over the staging of a race in a country in turmoil, with Red Bull's Mark Webber one of the drivers to voice his reservations.

"When you hear of people losing their lives, this is a tragedy," the Australian told the BBC.

"It's probably not the best time to go there for a sporting event. They have bigger things, bigger priorities."

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