Sporting briefs

Adriano: Speculation is rife in Italy that Brazil striker Adriano could be used as bait in a bid for Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard. Inter are looking to complete the transfer of the England midfielder and have already seen a near £8 million offer turned down. The Italian champions' president Massimo Moratti stated recently that it is now up to the player, who has yet to agree a contract extension at Chelsea. The latest reports claim Inter will offer Adriano plus cash in a bid to tempt Chelsea into a sale.

Mladenov: Stoycho Mladenov, who quit as coach of Bulgarian champions CSKA Sofia last week, has been appointed coach of Saudi Arabia's Al Ahli. The former Bulgaria coach led CSKA to their 31st league title last season but the club ran into financial difficulties and have been excluded from next season's Champions League.

Monterrubio: Experienced French midfielder Olivier Monterrubio has left Lens following their relegation from Ligue 1 to join Swiss side FC Sion for an undisclosed fee. The 31-year-old, who previously impressed in several seasons with both Nantes and Stade Rennes, signed a two-year contract with the club who finished seventh in the ten-team Super League last term.

Asamoah: Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan has joined Stade Rennes on a four-year deal from Serie A club Udinese. No details of the fee have been disclosed for the 22-year-old, who arrived in Italy in 2003/04 from Liberty Accra in his homeland.

Cigarni: Atalanta have bolstered their ranks by signing Luca Cigarini on a co-ownership deal from relegated Parma. The 22-year-old midfielder, who has penned a four-year-contract, will join his new team-mates after representing Italy at the Olympic Games in Beijing. Cigarini made 32 Serie A appearances for Parma last season, scoring three times.

Berbatov: Manchester United are interested in signing Tottenham Hotspur striker Dimitar Berbatov, the Bulgaria captain's agent confirmed. British media reported last weekend that the European and Premier League champions had made a 20-million pound bid for the gifted marksman."I know for certain United have shown interest in signing Dimitar," agent Emil Danchev said. "But I'm not entitled to make any more comments."

Friendlies: Played yesterday - SV Lippstadt vs Bayern Munich 1-7; Gutersloh vs Porto 1-4; Preussen Munster vs Rangers 0-1.

Motor racing: Kyle Busch re-took the lead with less than two laps remaining to win his seventh Sprint Cup race of the season at the Chicagoland Speedway on Saturday. The win came the day after he won the Nationwide Series race on the same track. He has 14 victories across all three NASCAR racing series this season. The 23-year-old Busch has a 262-point lead in the Sprint Cup standings over Dale Earnhardt Jr., who finished 16th.

Rugby: Springbok hooker Bismarck du Plessis has been banned for three weeks for careless conduct during Saturday's 30-28 Tri-Nations victory over New Zealand. Du Plessis was cited by match officials after he appeared to make contact with the eye area of All Blacks flanker Adam Thomson in the 11th minute of the first half. Du Plessis will miss only one test match during his suspension, against Australia in Perth on Saturday.