Sporting briefs

Arsenal: Arsenal winger Theo Walcott and striker Eduardo will both return to the squad from injury for Sunday's FA Cup fifth round match against Championship side Burnley. Walcott has not played since dislocating his shoulder in an England international in November, while Eduardo pulled his hamstring last month in his first game back from a horrific leg injury.

Aussies beaten: Kuwait stunned Australia 1-0 in an Asian Cup qualifier at Canberra Stadium yesterday to move to second place in the group standings and relegate the Socceroos to the bottom. The Australians, fielding a weakened team made up of players from the fledgling domestic competition, struggled to create clear chances then wasted the few opportunities they did get. "It's not a disaster but it was very disappointing," Australia coach Pim Verbeek told reporters.

Baxter: Jose Baxter, 17, the youngest player to feature in a senior match for Everton, has signed a new 30-month contract, the club said. The teenager, who has made four first team appearances, became the club's youngest first team player when he came on as a substitute against Blackburn in the Premier League last August aged 16 years, 191 days.

Maxi apology: Atletico Madrid captain Maxi Rodriguez has apologised for reacting angrily to coach Abel Resino's decision to substitute him midway through the second half of Sunday's 4-3 home win over Barcelona. "I made a mistake," the Argentina midfielder said. "When you are fired up these things happen and I said sorry to the coach at the end of the match."

Friendly: World champions Italy will visit Switzerland for a friendly on August 12. The venue is still to be decided, the Italian soccer federation said in a statement.

Triesman: David Triesman, chairman of the English FA and the board bidding to bring the World Cup to England in 2018, said he was resigning as a Labour peer in the House of Lords to become a non-aligned peer. "This change underlines my determination that the bid for the FIFA World Cup should be understood to be wholly outside any party politics," he said. FIFA's decision on who will host the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments is expected in December 2010.

Davis Cup: Martin Vassallo Arguello will replace the injured David Nalbandian for Argentina in their Davis Cup tie against the Netherlands, team captain Modesto Vazquez said. Vazquez had hoped to get Juan Martin del Potro in to replace Nalbandian but that proved impossible, meaning a debut for world no.50 Vassallo Arguello in the World Group first round tie from today till Sunday.

Motor racing: Brazilian Bruno Senna is talking to Mercedes about racing in the German touring car championship this year after seemingly losing out on a chance to drive for the former Honda Formula One team. "There are talks but no decision," Mercedes motorsport vice-president Norbert Haug said. Senna, 24, said this week that he was "kind of resigned to trying something else" this year.

Motorcycling: Honda MotoGP rider Dani Pedrosa will be out of action for three to four weeks after having three hours of surgery in Barcelona on the left knee and arm he injured in a crash in testing in Qatar on Monday. The Spaniard, who was third in the world championship last season, will be released from hospital today. The 2009 MotoGP season starts with a night race in Qatar on April 12.

Olympics: A flint axe over 4,000 years old and four prehistoric skeletons were among objects discovered during a two-year archaeological dig at London's Olympic Park. A Roman coin, medieval pottery and a complete 19th century hunting boat were also found during the dig of the 2.5 square kilometre site in east London, which took place before the building of venues and infrastructure began.

Formula One: Japanese driver Takuma Sato has ruled out any reserve role with either of the Red Bull-owned Formula One teams this season after failing to secure a race seat with Toro Rosso. "I am no longer in negotiation with the Toro Rosso or Red Bull teams about their third driver positions," Sato said. Japan's most successful Formula One driver has been out of F1 since his Honda-backed Super Aguri team folded last April.

Tennis: Lleyton Hewitt is optimistic about a successful return to form after a lengthy absence through injury. Hewitt, who was out for five months following hip surgery last year, said reaching the semi-finals of the Memphis Championship two weeks ago had helped restore his confidence. "The way I played in Memphis was as well as I've played in a long time and I'll continue playing with that kind of confidence," he said.