■ SoccerMpenza let go by Schalke
Schalke has released Belgian international striker Emile Mpenza, who is returning to his previous club Standard Liege, the Bundesliga club said Friday. "Emile told us that he didn't want to play for Schalke anymore. We have no use for such people," Schalke manager Rudi Assauer said in a report posted on the club's Web site. Mpenza scored 28 goals in 79 games for Schalke, but had a troublesome relations with the German club and its managers. Club officials often questioned his professional attitude.
■ Rugby
Kempson to miss Cup
Springbok prop Robbie Kempson was ruled out of the Rugby World Cup because of an elbow injury Friday, a day before the South Africa squad was to be named. It is the second straight World Cup Kempson will miss because of surgery. He missed the 1999 Cup after a hernia operation. Kempson will undergo an operation on Tuesday to repair a nerve injury in his left elbow, which flared during a training camp. He will be out for at least three months. The World Cup starts in six weeks. Friday marked the end of Kempson's four-week suspension for a high, late tackle against Australia in the Tri-Nations.
■ Soccer
Manchester City gets Reyna
US soccer captain Claudio Reyna signed for Manchester City Friday in a ?2.5 million (US$3.92 million) three-year deal. Reyna, 30, leaves relegated Sunderland where he had been since December 2001. He only played a handful of games for the club last season before damaging knee ligaments last October which required surgery and a lengthy layoff. He's unlikely to feature in the Manchester City's match against Arsenal today.
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