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■ ENGLAND

Mancienne gets surprise call

David Beckham has been axed from Fabio Capello’s 23-man England squad for Wednesday’s friendly against Germany in Berlin, while there was a surprise call-up for Chelsea defender Michael Mancienne. Capello left out Beckham because the LA Galaxy midfielder hasn’t played since the Major League season ended on Oct. 26. Beckham is due to join AC Milan on loan in January and could get the chance to equal Bobby Moore’s tally of 108 caps in England’s next friendly against Spain in February. Mancienne, 20, is yet to play a game for Chelsea, but Capello has been impressed by his performances on loan for Championship leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers and the England Under-21 team. Uncapped Aston Villa duo Gabriel Agbonlahor and Curtis Davies are also included, as is John Terry, even though the England captain was scheduled to have a scan on a foot injury he suffered in Chelsea’s 3-0 win at West Bromich Albion on Saturday. There were also recalls for in-form Tottenham Hotspur striker Darren Bent and Manchester City pair Micah Richards and Joe Hart. Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney were absent after missing Manchester United’s win over Stoke City with injuries.



■ NEW ZEALAND

North Korea win World Cup

North Korea beat the US 2-1 in extra time to win the FIFA under-17 women’s World Cup yesterday. The US took the lead after just two minutes when a long throw-in bounced awkwardly in front of the North Korean goal, struck defender Hong Myong-hui and looped over the goalkeeper’s outstretched arms into the net. The Americans’ lead endured until the 77th minute when Kim Un-hyang equalized for North Korea and forced the final into extra time. The first period was scoreless and the North Koreans were running into a strong wind in the second when Jang Hyon-sun struck the winner, preserving North Korea’s unbeaten record through six matches at the tournament. North Korea’s win was their first ever women’s World Cup title at under-17 level and adds to the under-20 title they won two years ago. Pre-tournament favorites Germany beat England 3-0 in the playoff for third place.



■ FRANCE

Lorient rally to beat Marseille

Olympique Marseille threw away a two-goal lead as they lost 3-2 at home to Ligue 1 strugglers Lorient on Saturday. Marseille stay second with 26 points from 14 matches, four behind leaders Olympique Lyon. Erik Gerets’s side looked set for a straightforward victory when Mamadou Niang added to Karim Ziani’s first-half opener from the penalty spot on the hour, but terrible defending cost them dear. Lorient scored three times in 14 minutes near the end. A bad clearance by the Marseille defense resulted in Morgan Amalfitano scoring from 20m in the 76th minute. Lorient continued to push forward and Fabrice Abriel equalized with a low 25m shot in the 84th minute after a swift counterattack. Three minutes later, Abriel fed striker Kevin Gameiro with a defense-splitting pass and he scored to give Lorient the points. An early double by Andre-Pierre Gignac earned Toulouse a 2-0 home win over promoted Grenoble as the southwestern side moved up to third in the table. Steve Savidan scored seven minutes into the second half as Caen snatched a 1-1 draw at Nancy. Paris St Germain beat Le Havre 3-1 and Alain Perrin, who was hired to revive struggling Saint Etienne last week, saw the scale of the task ahead of him as his team crashed 3-0 at Lille.


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