Eto'o undergoes thigh surgery

Barcelona's Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o underwent surgery on the thigh injury he picked up during the week. The operation took place yesterday morning, the club said.

Eto'o suffered a partial tear of a tendon in his right thigh two minutes after coming on as a substitute in Wednesday's 5-0 victory over Inter in the Gamper Trophy.

On Thursday, the club said they expected Eto'o to be sidelined for at least two months.

The three-times African Player of the Year missed a large chunk of last season after injuring his right knee during a Champions League match against Werder Bremen in September 2006.

Alves and Riquelme stay put

Sevilla right-back Daniel Alves and Villarreal playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme will remain with their respective clubs after failing to agree moves before the transfer deadline closed on Friday night.

The Brazil international Alves had been close to a switch to Chelsea and latterly Real Madrid, after saying he wanted to move on.

Argentina's Riquelme was reportedly near to a deal with free-spending Atletico Madrid, but will have to return to Villarreal and make his peace.

Riquelme spent the final six months of last season on loan at Boca Juniors having fallen out with coach Manuel Pellegrini.

F1 magnates take charge at QPR

QPR have confirmed that Formula One magnates Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone have "made a recommended offer" for the Coca-Cola Championship club.

Briatore, head of the Renault F1 team, and Ecclestone will now take control of the club although current chairman Gianni Paladini will remain in position. "Bernie and I were delighted to receive a recommendation from the board of QPR for our bid for the club and we look forward to working alongside Gianni Paladini and his team," Briatore said.

Arsenal sign Chelsea's Diarra

Arsenal have signed France international midfielder Lassana Diarra from Chelsea on a "long-term contract" for an undisclosed fee.

The versatile 22-year-old had found first-team opportunities limited at Stamford Bridge and now looks forward to a new start with the Gunners.

"I have great respect for the manager Arsene Wenger and am attracted by the style of football that the team plays," Diarra said. "Of course I am excited by what the future holds and keen to play my part in helping Arsenal fight for trophies this season."

Solano joins West Ham for free

West Ham have landed Newcastle's Nolberto Solano on a free transfer, just moments before the close of the transfer window.

Alan Curbishley was desperate to bring in a right-sided midfielder after summer signing Kieron Dyer suffered a broken leg.

Earlier in the summer, Magpies boss Sam Allardyce insisted he had no intention of letting Solano leave but circumstances have changed with the versatile player heading to Upton Park.

UEFA overturn Empoli draw

UEFA have forced Empoli to swap their UEFA Cup home and away legs with FC Zurich after the club had initially refused.

Friday's draw for the first round gave Empoli the second leg at the Stadio Castellani on October 4 with the opener in Switzerland on September 20.

As Zurich's stadium will not complete reconstruction work until September 25, they had asked to exchange the two dates, but the Italian side refused.

Now UEFA have decided to overturn the situation, so Empoli will have to play the first leg on home turf on September 20 and Zurich will have the home advantage in the concluding match.

Lazio director quits after blunder

Lazio director of sport Walter Sabatini has resigned over the botched Juan Pablo Carrizo transfer that left them with no first choice goalkeeper.

The club had picked the Argentine to replace recently retired Angelo Peruzzi, but the deal dragged on for weeks when he failed to complete his EU membership application in time.

The transfer window closed last night and the Biancocelesti were unable to find a suitable replacement.

Recoba given heroes' welcome

Thousands of Torino fans gave a rousing welcome to new signing Alvaro Recoba yesterday.

The Uruguayan completed his loan move to Turin on Friday and had his first training session under the packed Curva Maratona yesterday morning.

"I had never received a welcome like this, not even at Inter," said a clearly emotional Recoba.

"This Toro is an excellent squad, even if it cannot aim for the Scudetto. We are ambitious, but there is no point saying it, you have to play and prove it on the field."

Suree's Man. City move in doubt

Suree Sukha's hopes of becoming the first Thai to play in the English Premier League have hit a setback after his application for a work permit was rejected by the British government.

Full-back Suree had impressed Manchester City on a two-week trial, but the Home Office refused him a permit as Thailand are ranked outside FIFA's top 70 and he had not played in 75 per cent of their international matches, the Bangkok Post reported yesterday.