Football news

Fulham midfielder Jimmy Bullard is on course to resume his career by Christmas as he continues his recovery from an horrific knee injury. The 29-year-old has been out of action for a year after a tackle at Newcastle left him with a dislocated kneecap and extensive cruciate ligament damage.

"October still looks about right for me to be playing again but match fitness remains the key," he said.

"The knee is fine now but although you may think you are fit, it is not until you see the other lads going into tackles that you realise it is going to take time. By Christmas, I think I ought to be fully ready."

Ferguson has no retirement date

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson admits it is difficult to make the final decision on his retirement as he wants to go out at the very top.

The 65-year-old shelved plans to step down in 2002 and showed his desire for trophies last season when United won the title after a four-year lapse.

"The important thing is to leave a good team. The present team is very, very good but they will get better," Ferguson said.

"I won't decide on who will replace me. I have a great assistant in Carlos Queiroz, I think he will be a strong candidate.'

Real missed out on star trio

Real Madrid technical secretary Miguel Angel Portugal has revealed how the Spanish giants missed out on three of the game's brightest talents.

Portugal, who was involved in Real's youth set-up, admits Barcelona duo Lionel Messi and Giovani Dos Santos, plus Man. United winger Cristiano Ronaldo, were all within Real's sights but were allowed to slip away.

"It was the time of the 'Galacticos', when these players were more important than developing the young ones," Portugal told Radio Marca.

"When Giovani was 14, we had the chance to sign him. The same with Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo," he added. "But during that era the youth set-up did not have the money for signing players."

'Dark weekend' for English fans

A new record will be set on October 6 with only one of the 10 Premier League games starting at the traditional Saturday 3 p.m. (British time) kick-off. Eight matches will take place on Sunday, October 7 and another at 12.45 p.m on the Saturday.

Due to the demands of television and involvement in the UEFA Cup, only Aston Villa vs West Ham remains on Saturday at 3 p.m.

Malcolm Clarke, chairman of the Football Supporters' Federation, said: "Fans still very much like the traditional 3 p.m. Saturday kick-off and the decline in that element of the game is a matter of great concern.

"To have only one game at that time is extraordinary and it will be a dark weekend for fans. It's symbolic of the way things are going but the views of the match-going fan seem to be bottom of the list of priorities."

Zenga takes charge of D. Bucharest

Former Italy goalkeeper Walter Zenga yesterday signed a two-year contract to take charge of Romanian champions Dinamo Bucharest.

"Zenga agreed all details of our contract and will be Dinamo coach for the next two years," Nicolae Badea told Reuters.

Badea said Zenga's main aims were to defend Dinamo's league title and qualify for the UEFA Cup group stage. Zenga has previously coached National Bucharest and Steaua Bucharest and was capped 58 times by Italy.

Controversy will inspire Italy

Alessandro Del Piero believes that France have made a mistake in stirring up the recent controversy.

France coach Raymond Domenech was banned after making allegations against Italian football, claiming that an U-21 international between the nations in 1999 had been officiated by a biased referee.

Members of the Azzurri camp have remained tight-lipped throughout the last few weeks and Del Piero reckons they can channel their frustration to their advantage.

"This atmosphere reminds me of before the World Cup semi-final against Germany," Del Piero said. "We won that game fair and square and I think that our opponents have scored a similar own goal here."

Rosina set for new contract

Alessandro Rosina is currently in negotiations with Torino about a new contract, president Urbano Cairo has said.

Rosina is one of the most exciting prospects to come out of Turin in recent years and has scored in both of the Granata's opening two Serie A fixtures.

"We have every intention of closing a deal with him as there is no point in dragging things out. Torino want Rosina and Rosina wants Torino. He will soon sign until 2012," Cairo said.

Ronaldo's recovery stalls

Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani has admitted that he doesn't know when striker Ronaldo will recover from injury.

The Brazil international is reportedly struggling with a thigh injury suffered during pre-season and the Milan medical team are unsure of the best course of action for the forward.

"Nothing has happened to him, but he is still feeling some pain," Galliani told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"Until we are sure that he is completely recovered, he won't feature in the side. This is a medical issue so I can't say when he will return to action."

Salihamidzic injury not serious

Juventus have been boosted by the news that Hasan Salihamidzic's thigh injury is not as serious as previously thought.

The former Bayern Munich midfielder pulled up clutching the back of his right thigh during Sunday's 3-2 win at Cagliari. There were fears he had suffered a strain that would keep him out of action for at least three weeks, but doctors gave a far more reassuring diagnosis yesterday.

Tests revealed it was only an "elongation" of the muscle without damage to the fibres and the player should be back in action next week.