Sporting briefs

Barnes: Tranmere Rovers have appointed former Liverpool and England winger John Barnes as their new manager. The 45-year-old Barnes, who was capped 79 times for England, stepped down from a short stint as coach of Jamaica recently having won the Caribbean Championship last December. Barnes will begin a second spell as a club manager, having had a short stint at Celtic which ended in him being sacked in 2000.

Left behind: Peru striker Hernan Rengifo has criticised the country's football federation after he was left behind in the team hotel following Wednesday's World Cup qualifier in Colombia. "What happened with the team and the journey will remain on the consciences of the directors," the Polish-based player said. "They know their responsibilities." Peruvian media said that the squad left their team hotel in Medellin earlier than planned but that nobody told Rengifo of the change.

Shot dead: Abel Tador, the captain of Bayelsa United football club, has been shot dead by armed robbers just hours after leading his club to a first-ever Nigerian league title. Bayelsa clinched the Nigeria championship after they held hosts Warri Wolves to a 2-2 draw in Oleh on Sunday. But after the match, Tador, a 24-year-old defensive midfielder, was shot in the head while driving to his family home.

Catania: Serie A outfit Catania are likely to complete the signature of Estudiantes goalkeeper Mariano Andujar this month. The 25-year-old Argentine has been in talks with Catania and reports said an agreement is close. It will be a return to Serie A for Andujar, who was at Palermo in 2005-06, making just 11 appearances, but this year he helped Estudiantes to their first title in 23 years.

Australia: Australia striker Harry Kewell and defender Chris Coyne will miss tomorrow's World Cup qualifier against Japan in Melbourne because of fatigue. With Australia already assured of their place at next year's World Cup in South Africa, Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek said the players needed the break after a heavy workload.

Bergodi: Italian Cristiano Bergodi has been installed as the new coach of Steaua Bucharest. Bergodi, 44, will replace compatriot Massimo Pedrazzini, who oversaw the last three games of the season after the departure of Marius Lacatus last month. The former Lazio player signed a two-year contract worth €250,000 a year with the Bucharest side that finished sixth last season.

U-21 championships: (Group B) England vs Finland 2-1; Spain vs Germany 0-0. Today - (Group A) 6.15 p.m. Sweden vs Belarus; 8.45 p.m. Serbia vs Italy.

Boxing: Three-time heavyweight world champion Lennox Lewis was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in New York on Sunday. Lewis was inducted along with American bantamweight champion Orlando Canizales and South African junior lightweight champion Brian Mitchell. Lewis, 43, retired in 2003 with a record of 41-2-1, including 32 knockouts. He entered the hall in his first year of eligibility.

Cricket: Millions of fans in India woke up yesterday to disbelief after the defending champions were knocked out of the World Twenty20 by England. The defeat at Lord's meant India, who won the inaugural 2007 edition in South Africa, have no chance of progressing further in the tournament. 'Out' read a huge headline in the Indian Express, which described the team's performance as undignified.

Golf: US Tour rookie Anna Nordqvist held off a late charge by Australian Lindsey Wright and won the LPGA Championship by four strokes at Bulle Rock, Maryland, on Sunday. Nordqvist shot a 68 in the final round, capping it off with a four-foot birdie at the last for a total of 15-under-par 273. The Swede made the women's major her first victory in an LPGA tournament in her fifth start on the circuit.

Motor racing: A Mexican driver died on Sunday in a crash during a Nascar race in the state of Puebla, Nascar Mexico said. Carlos Pardo, 33, who was leading the race in the last lap, lost control of his car when he was hit by another driver, sending him crashing against a barrier. Nascar, the major auto-racing league in the US, sanctions a Mexican version run by a joint venture. Racers in Mexico do not compete with US drivers.