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Spors Briefs

■ Soccer
Still no pay for Leeds players
Players at fallen English giants Leeds United have not been paid for nearly six weeks as a result of the ongoing saga surrounding the club's ownership, the players' trade union said. Ken Bates placed Leeds in administration on May 4 with debts of ?35 million (US$71.8 million) and won the race to buy back the club on July 11 and regain control at London's Elland Road. Most of the League One club's players agreed to a wage deferral in May after Leeds went into administration, but it was hoped Bates' buyback of the club would ensure no further problems. "It's an absolute mess and it needs to be resolved urgently because the players are reaching the end of their tethers," Professional Footballers Association (PFA) representative Mick McGuire said.

■ Baseball
NY explosion shocks Matsui
New York's steam pipe explosion has shocked Yankees slugger Hideki Matsui, who lives nearby and has been urged to evacuate, reports said yesterday. The Japanese star's apartment is just 700m from the accident site in midtown Manhattan and authorities have issued a voluntary evacuation order due to asbestos, Japanese sports dailies reported. Japanese reporters at Yankee Stadium were apparently the first to break the news of the order to "Godzilla" on Thursday. "An evacuation? Really?" Matsui asked reporters, as quoted by the Sports Hochi daily. The Sports Nippon said Matsui looked stunned and repeated "really?" three times.

■ Soccer
MLS All-Stars top Celtic 2-0
Colombians Juan Pablo Angel and Juan Toja each scored goals in Commerce City, Colorado, on Thursday to lift the MLS All-Stars to a 2-0 victory over Scottish powerhouse Celtic. While David Beckham is the headliner, players like Angel and Toja, who came to the US this season to play Major League Soccer, could be every bit as important to the future of the sport in the US. A crowd of 18,661 saw the MLS team put on a pretty good show against Celtic, which is still working its way into form but is, nevertheless, the two-time defending champs of the Scottish Premier League.

■ Tennis
Henin out of San Diego WTA
World No. 1 Justine Henin of Belgium withdrew from the WTA hardcourt tournament starting in San Diego, California, on Monday with a right wrist injury, organizers said on Thursday. Henin, beaten in the semi-finals at Wimbledon in her last match, said on her Internet site that she would resume training in Monaco next week but wouldn't pick up a racquet until Aug. 5. She expects to play in a tournament in Toronto from Aug. 13 before the US Open, the final grand slam of the year, in New York from Aug. 27 to Sept. 9.

■ Soccer
Papin might coach China
Former French striker Jean-Pierre Papin has emerged as a top candidate to coach China's national side after the team's disastrous first-round exit from the Asian Cup, press reports said yesterday. Papin will arrive in Beijing this month for talks with the China Football Association, which is expected to fire coach Zhu Guanghu (朱廣滬) after the team's appalling result in Kuala Lumpur, the leading Titan Sports Weekly said. Meanwhile Zhu has refused to resign following China's 3-0 loss to Uzbekistan on Wednesday -- its first failure to reach the second round of an Asian Cup in 27 years.

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