Sporting briefs...

DESAILLY: Marcel Desailly has left Qatar champions Al Gharafa for first division rivals Qatar Sports Club (QSC). The 37-year-old defender scored six goals in 27 games to help Al Gharafa collect their fourth Qatar title last season. Algerian Ali Benarbia, formerly of Man. City, has also joined QSC from Qatar's Al Rayyan club. Former Argentina strikers Claudio Caniggia and Gabriel Batistuta, who were playing for QSC and Al Arabi Sports Club respectively, announced their retirements towards the end of last season.

BARTON: Manchester City are to investigate an incident in a hotel bar involving ex-England U-21 international Joey Barton on their tour of Thailand. Last December, Barton was found guilty of gross misconduct by a City disciplinary hearing. The club fined him six weeks' wages for poking a lit cigar in the eye of trainee Jamie Tandy during a row at City's Christmas party.

WESTERVELD: Dutch goalkeeper Sander Westerveld, a free agent after leaving Spanish club Real Mallorca last season, has joined Portsmouth. Westerveld, who previously played for FC Twente and Vitesse Arnhem, made 75 appearances for Liverpool before joining Real Sociedad in 2001. He spent three years with Sociedad before moving to Mallorca in November 2004. The 30-year-old Westerveld has won six caps for the Netherlands.

ZAGORAKIS: Midfielder Theodoros Zagorakis, who led Greece to a surprise success at Euro 2004, says he has followed his heart by rejoining PAOK Salonika. The Greece captain has been enjoying a hero's welcome from thousands of the first division club's adoring fans on his return to domestic soccer from Serie A side Bologna. His arrival at a packed airport in Thessaloniki saw the kind of scenes reserved for film and pop stars after the deal was completed this week, having been announced a month ago. "I want to thank God for letting me come back to PAOK, Greece's greatest team," he said after signing a two-year contract.

BAPTISTA: Sevilla coach Juande Ramos says he wants the future of Brazilian forward Julio Baptista to be resolved as soon as possible so that he can get on with planning for next season. "We all want him to stay at the club, but we all know what situation he is in and we are going to have to wait and see what happens," Ramos said. Baptista, who has been at the centre of a long-running transfer saga between Sevilla and Arsenal, appeared to rule out a move when he returned to the club earlier this week saying he wanted to acquire Spanish citizenship.

MENEGAZZO: Bordeaux have signed Brazilian Fernando Menegazzo from Siena on a one-year loan deal, the Ligue 1 side said yesterday. A powerful defensive midfielder, Menegazzo is a former U-21 international who had been on loan at Serie B club Catania. The 24-year-old is expected to play alongside French international Rio Mavuba in front of the Bordeaux defence.