SPORTS SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2016

Leaders Spartak face tough Moscow derby test

MOSCOW: Russian Premier League “I was really happy with our per- Alenichev resigned after Spartak’s head coach Yury Semin told media. leaders Spartak Moscow will face a formance in what was a very impor- shock elimination from the Europa “And we’ve solved this problem.” stern test of their title credentials tant match,” said Italian coach League at the hands of AEK Larnaca of CSKA travel to to face when they face fierce city rivals Massimo Carrera. Cyprus a month ago. Bayer Leverkusen in their opening Lokomotiv in a Moscow derby clash “It wasn’t easy at all after we were Having no European commitments Champions League group game next tomorrow. Spartak have got off to a reduced to 10 men but we showed could help Spartak in the long run, Wednesday, but first they entertain superb start to the campaign as they good fighting spirit to withstand the especially with CSKA preparing for the third-placed Terek Grozny on Saturday look to win the title for the first time pressure. But I’m confident that we start of a Champions League cam- in the first official match at their new since 2001, winning four and drawing can play even better.” paign. Lokomotiv, who are unbeaten 30,000-seat CSKA Arena. “It’s really one of their opening five games. Former Juventus and Atalanta but have drawn four of their five nice to get your home ground at last,” A 2-0 win at Anzhi Makhachkala last defender Carrera previously worked games, bolstered their squad before CSKA manager Leonid Slutsky said. time out-despite the second-half under Antonio Conte at Juve and with the transfer window closed with the CSKA have scored just four times sending-off of Andrey Yeshchenko- Italy before becoming assistant to signings of forward Igor Portnyagin in five league outings but Slutsky is ensured that they went into the inter- Dmitry Alenichev this summer at and Russian international midfielder hopeful giant Ivorian summer sign- national break two points clear of Spartak. Igor Denisov. “We needed some fresh ing Lacina Traore will soon start to reigning champions CSKA Moscow at However, he was promptly promot- blood to boost competition for places make an impact as his fitness the top of the table. ed to the role of coach when throughout the squad,” Lokomotiv improves. — AFP

All eyes on Manchester Blatter under new probe as Jose, Pep lock horns

LONDON: The eyes of the world will be on Manchester this week- over salaries and bonuses end as Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola bring their bitter feud to the Premier League for the first time. Any derby between Manchester United and Manchester City is ZURICH: Former FIFA president Sepp guaranteed to be an explosive affair, but the presence of sworn Blatter and ex-secretary general enemies Mourinho and Guardiola should ensure the animosity lev- Jerome Valcke, already banned from els are higher than usual today. football for ethics violations, are fac- With City top of the table and United just behind them in third ing a fresh investigation, this time after both won their first three league games, there was already over the salaries and bonuses they more than local bragging rights at stake in a showdown between received in office. two sure-fire title contenders. FIFA’s ethics committee said its Even City midfielder Fernandinho’s boast that “this game is big, investigators had opened formal pro- man. It’s a game that stops the city” doesn’t do justice to a fixture ceedings against both men, along reported to be the richest match in football history with over £600 with former finance director Markus million ($790 million, 708 million euros) of world-class talent on Kattner, for possible ethics violations parade. Yet, despite the presence of Paul Pogba, David Silva, Zlatan which included “bribery and corrup- Ibrahimovic and a host of other stars, it’s the action on the Old tion”. Trafford touchline that will be must-see TV for millions around the The suspected violations were “in world as United manager Mourinho and City boss Guardiola lock the context of salaries and bonuses horns for the first time in three years in the 17th instalment of their paid to Mr Blatter, Mr Valcke and Mr acrimonious rivalry. Kattner as well as other provisions The sight of Mourinho and Guardiola gesticulating and exhort- included in the contracts of these ing their players signals the resumption of a complicated relation- three individuals,” it said. ship that has turned increasingly ugly since they first met at They are also suspected of having Barcelona two decades ago. breached rules on general conduct, Mourinho’s constant jibes at Barcelona boss Guardiola during loyalty, conflicts of interest and his time at Real Madrid undoubtedly got under the Spaniard’s skin, “offering and accepting gifts and oth- but the Portuguese coach’s record of just three wins in their 16 er benefits.” Blatter, Valcke and meetings is a significant blemish on his otherwise glittering CV. Kattner could not immediately be Although Guardiola has come out on top seven times against reached for comment. They have pre- Mourinho, he goes into the derby at a significant disadvantage fol- viously denied wrongdoing. lowing City striker Sergio Aguero’s three-match ban for elbowing Blatter has said his earnings were West Ham United’s Winston Reid. in line with top officials from profes- Leroy Sane could deputise for Aguero, who had already scored sional sports leagues around the six times this season, after the Germany winger returned from the world. Soccer’s global governing hamstring injury that delayed his debut after his £37 million ($48 body is attempting to recover from million, 43 million euros) move from Schalke. the worst graft scandal in its history which has seen 42 people, including JERUSALEM: File photo, FIFA President attends a press con- SUPER-FAST former FIFA executive committee ference in Jerusalem. The FIFA ethics committee said yesterday it opened Guardiola must also decide whether to give a debut to Chile members, indicted in the United formal proceedings against Blatter, former secretary general Jerome goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, who arrived from Barcelona to replace States since May last year. Valcke and former finance director Markus Kattner over million-dollar the exiled Joe Hart, or stick with stand-in Willy Caballero. Criminal investigations are also payments in their contracts. — AP “I’ve played in derby games in Germany but this should be a under way in , where FIFA great match and one I’m really looking forward to, especially has its headquarters. FIFA said in June that an internal investigation “special bonuses” for the 2010 World Platini with Blatter’s approval in 2011 because Pep Guardiola is taking on Jose Mourinho,” Sane said. Cup in South Africa, while Blatter and for work done a decade earlier. Aguero’s absence will make it even harder for City to break a revealed that the three officials had received 79 million Swiss francs ($81 Valcke got a total of 14 million francs He has taken his case to sport’s defence marshalled by Ivory Coast centre-back Eric Bailly, who has in bonuses for the 2014 World Cup in highest tribunal, the Court of caught the eye of United goalkeeper David de Gea since his pre- million) in compensation over five years, calling them “massive pay- Brazil and 15.5 million francs for the Arbitration for Sport, and is awaiting season move from Villarreal. 2018 World Cup in Russia, the firm a verdict. Valcke was fired in January “Bailly was a great signing, he’s come in and surprised us all very outs”. FIFA’s lawyers Quinn Emanuel, said. and has since been banned for 12 quickly.” De Gea said. “I remember when I first came to England Blatter, 80, who led FIFA from 1998 years, reduced to 10 on appeal, for and, trust me, it can be hard early on but he’s flying. which conducted the investigation, said the evidence revealed a coordi- until 2015, has already been banned ethics violations which included “He is physical, strong, technically confident and super-fast.” for eight years, later to reduced to six using FIFA expenses for sightseeing At the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger nated effort by the three to “enrich themselves through annual salary following an appeal. trips and destruction of evidence. could give debuts to deadline day signings Shkodran Mustafi, a The ban was imposed for ethics Kattner, who took over as act- £35 million Germany defender from Valencia, and Lucas Perez, a increases, World Cup bonuses and other incentives.” violations related to a payment of 2 ing secretary general after £17 million Spanish forward from Deportivo La Coruna, as the million Swiss francs that FIFA made to Valcke’s dismissal, was fired by Gunners face Southampton. — AFP The sums received by the trio included 23 million Swiss francs in then European soccer boss Michel FIFA in May. — Reuters