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■ SOCCER

Beckham praises Capello

David Beckham is eager to play under new England manager Fabio Capello -- despite the stormy relationship the two shared at Real Madrid. The 32-year-old midfielder has played 99 games for England and hopes to reach his century of appearances in England's friendly against Switzerland at Wembley Stadium on Feb. 6. "Fabio is one of the managers players look up to and want to manage them. I hope I'll be part of his plans. I think he is a great appointment for England," Beckham told BBC Radio in an interview to be broadcast yesterday. Capello was noncommittal about Beckham's future during his first news conference on Dec. 17.



■ SOCCER

Referee shows red card, gun

A Malaysian referee took out his gun and fired warning shots in the air after a local soccer match turned unruly following the suspension of a player, a newspaper said yesterday. The referee, also a policeman, ran to his patrol car to get his gun after players mobbed him for showing the red-card to one of them, the New Straits Times said. "We are investigating as to whether the policeman was justified in taking out his firearm and discharging it, and also why he had it with him during the match," it quoted Hussin Ismail, police chief in the southern Johor state, as saying. The policeman was taken into custody for suspected misuse of firearms. Five players, aged between 23 and 40, were also being held for questioning, the paper said.



■ RUGBY UNION

Williams may coach Ulster

Former Scotland coach Matt Williams is expected to be named as the new coach of Ulster, the Belfast Telegraph newspaper reported on Monday. The 46-year-old Australian, who has also had a spell in charge of Leinster, has been lined up to replace Mark McCall, who resigned after a string of poor results last month. Caretaker coach Steve Williams will remain in charge of team affairs for the visit of Munster on Jan. 4. Williams endured a torrid time in the Scotland hotseat. In two years, he won three out of 17 games and was sacked along with his backroom staff in April 2005.



■ SOCCER

Amor cleared to go home

Former Barcelona and Spain midfielder Guillermo Amor has been cleared to return home after being badly injured in a car crash, medical staff at the Verge de la Cinta Hospital in Tortosa, Tarragona, have said. The 40-year-old had been taken there suffering from serious injuries to his chest, stomach and pelvis. His car left a road and crashed down an embankment while he was returning home in the early hours of Dec. 16, after commentating on a league match between Valencia and Barcelona.



■ BOXING

Winner loses consciousness

A South Korean boxer fell unconscious and was rushed into surgery with a brain injury following his WBO intercontinental flyweight win against an Indonesian challenger. Cho Yoi-sam, 33, unanimously outpointed Heri Amol, 24, in his title defense match in Seoul, although he was knocked down in the final 12th round. Shortly after the fight, however, Choi, a former WBC champion, lost consciousness and was taken to a hospital. Choi underwent brain surgery for several hours and his condition was not immediately known, a nurse at the emergency room at Soonchunhyang University Hospital in Seoul said.



■ SOCCER

Lowe busted for possession

Former forward Onandi Lowe has been arrested for marijuana possession, police said on Monday. Lowe, who was cleared of drug charges in England in 2005, was arrested on Sunday evening while driving on a highway south of Kingston, the Jamaican capital. Authorities found 42 marijuana cigarettes in Lowe's car, police said. Lowe was released from custody after posting US$300 bail and was scheduled to appear before a judge on Jan. 8. A former player with English League Championship team Coventry City, Lowe scored 19 goals in over 60 appearances for the Reggae Boyz. He played for Jamaica at the 1998 World Cup in France. The striker was arrested by British police in April 2004 for allegedly attempting to smuggle crack-cocaine out of the country.



■ SOCCER

Iraq own goal loses game

A bizarre own goal seven minutes from time by Iraq's Ahmad Abid gave Thailand a 2-1 victory on Monday and a place in the final of the King's Cup tournament. With the score locked at 1-1, Abid tried to clear a powerful low cross from Narongchai Vachiraban with a spectacular diving header but found his own net instead, handing the Thais a place in the final with one round-robin game remaining. The hosts took the lead on 43 minutes when in-form striker Surayuth Chaikamdee broke free on the right and floated an inch-perfect cross on to the head of the onrushing Nattaporn Phanrit, who buried the ball in the roof of the net. Iraq came back fighting in the second half and took just five minutes to find the equalizer when forward Mubarak Almas brought down a looping cross and beat the Thai keeper from close range.



■ SOCCER

Chelsea may be short

Chelsea could be without its first and second-choice goalkeepers heading into the busy Christmas and New Year period -- and at least for Wednesday's match against Aston Villa. Petr Cech had a scan on Monday after straining a side muscle in Chelsea's 1-0 win over Blackburn in the Premier League on Sunday. Cech went off midway through the second half and was replaced by goalkeeper Hilario because second-choice Carlo Cudicini was sidelined after hurting his rib in training. Chelsea declined to put a time limit on the two recovering. "Scans today have shown bruising around Petr's hip and side," Chelsea said in a statement on Monday. "We will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days and hope to have him back playing as soon as possible."



■ SOCCER

Maradona praises Iran

Former Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona says he wants to meet Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a leading US foe, local media reported on Monday. Maradona, an outspoken critic of the administration of US President George W. Bush, gave a signed soccer shirt to an Iranian diplomat on Saturday after a game in the televised Showbol tournament of mini-matches. Maradona, 47, is an admirer of Cuban President Fidel Castro and he said this month he wanted a tattoo of Hugo Chavez, the fiery left-wing president of Venezuela and an ally of Iran. "I've already met Fidel and Chavez ... I'd like to meet Ahmadinejad," he told Iran's top diplomat in Argentina Mohsen Baharvand in a video broadcast by local media on Monday. "I'm there with the people of Iran, really with all my heart," he said after the game in Buenos Aires.
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