Football news

Japan have risked reigniting a club-versus-country row with Scottish champions Celtic by calling up Shunsuke Nakamura for two internationals next month.

The 30-year-old is wanted by Japan coach Takeshi Okada for the friendly with the United Arab Emirates on October 9 and a World Cup qualifier against Uzbekistan on October 15.

Japan's home game with Uzbekistan takes place just six days before Celtic travel to Man. United for a Champions League Group E clash.

Nakamura has struggled in recent seasons with the demands of playing for his country.

Policeman fears Lazio fans' revenge

The policeman accused of murdering a Lazio fan at a service station in November 2007 did not attend the first court hearing of his trial because he feared retribution from Lazio's ultra fans, his lawyer said.

The atmosphere was calm outside court in Arezzo where friends of Gabriele Sandri, shot dead on his way to a match following a scuffle between fans, had gathered.

Sandri's death sparked widespread fan riots across Italy which left 40 policemen injured. Sandri, a disc jockey, was hit by a bullet in the neck as he sat in a car while police tried to stop fighting between Lazio and Juventus supporters.

The policeman had said his gun went off as he ran to stop a brawl between rival fans.

Children replace Napoli fans in Genoa

Children will replace the Napoli fans in Genoa while restrictions have also been imposed on Siena-Roma and Reggina-Catania.

The Napoli supporters have been barred from travelling to away games for the rest of the season after damaging a train to and from the Roma game on matchday one.

As the away end of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris would otherwise have been empty for the encounter with Napoli on October 5, those seats will be reserved for local children, families and students.

The CASMS commission also announced this week that Siena-Roma and Reggina-Catania will have restricted sales to limit the possibility of crowd trouble.

Only one ticket per away fan will be allowed for those attending these Serie A matches.

CSKA to sue BFU

Bulgarian champions CSKA Sofia will take legal action against the national football union after being excluded from the European Champions League.

CSKA were banned from European competition after the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU) said in June that they had failed to meet licensing criteria because they owed money to the state and creditors.

Lawyer Thomas Summerer said the BFU had failed in its duty towards CSKA, who won last season's domestic championship without losing a match and earned a place in the Champions League third qualifying round.

Atletico dismiss Aguero's City link

Atletico Madrid coach Javier Aguirre has quashed speculation linking striker Sergio Aguero with Manchester City, insisting the Argentinian youngster is happy where he is.

Manchester City are believed to have had scouts at Atletico's Primera Liga match against Getafe on Wednesday to monitor the striker whose contract buy-out clause is £40 million.

"On the subject of him possibly leaving, he has a contract here, he is happy here and I'm sure that is going to want to stay," Aguirre said.

"Sergio, I truly believe, is going to do very good things here."

Aguero, who has also attracted interest from Real Madrid, Inter and Chelsea, joined Atletico from Independiente in 2006 for a fee reportedly in the region of £16 million, and has four years left on his contract.

Newcastle approach Venables

Former England manager Terry Venables has confirmed that he has held talks with Newcastle United.

The troubled North East club are looking for a manager to take over on a temporary basis and fill the void left by Kevin Keegan who quit the club at the beginning of this month.

Magpies owner Mike Ashley is in the process of trying to sell the Premier League club, which has meant any permanent appointment of Keegan's successor has not been possible.

"I can confirm I met Newcastle representatives," Venables told The Sun.

"Those talks will continue on Thursday (yesterday) when, hopefully, I can give them a final decision."

Liverpool mull bid for Brazilian Aislan

Liverpool are reportedly mulling a move for highly-rated Brazilian defender Aislan.

According to the Liverpool Echo, manager Rafael Benitez will only follow up his interest in the 20-year-old if he's sure of obtaining a work permit for the player.

It has been reported that the Reds considered signing the Sao Paulo star during the last transfer window but backed off when the work permit issue arose.

Sao Paulo are hoping to receive a substantial transfer fee for Aislan, who has a release clause of £10.5m in his contract.