Sporting briefs

Alumnia: Arsenal will be without injured duo Manuel Almunia and Robin van Persie for today's Champions League match away to Belgian side Standard Liege. Goalkeeper Almunia has a chest infection and will be replaced by Vito Mannone or Wojciech Szczesny for the Group H match as reserve Lukasz Fabianski recovers from a knee injury.

Infantino: Gianni Infantino will take over from David Taylor as secretary general of UEFA from October 1. Taylor will move to become head of a new division overseeing commercial operations within UEFA.

Enke: Keeper Robert Enke, who pulled out of Germany's squad before last week's World Cup qualifier against Azerbaijan with a mysterious infection, will need more tests to identify his illness, his club Hanover 96 said. Blood analysis at a Hamburg institute specialising in tropical diseases showed no infectious illness and the keeper could now return to individual training.

Ketsbaia: Olympiakos have parted company with head coach Temuri Ketsbaia just two games into the new league season, the reigning Greek champions announced. The 41-year-old Georgian signed a three-year contract on May 25 but leaves the Pireaus club following a 2-0 away victory over Larissa and a goalless home draw with Kavala.

Asian Cup: The AFC hopes to fast-track its announcement on the host for the 2015 Asian Cup by almost a year after Australia were the sole bidders. The formal decision on where the tournament will be held was originally expected to be made in 2011, during the next Asian Cup in Qatar, but could now be brought forward to March 2010. This would be around nine months before FIFA decides the host countries for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, for which Australia is one of 11 bidders.

Athletics: Former Olympic and world champion Allen Johnson will face Liu Xiang when the high-profile Chinese athlete makes his long-awaited return to action at this weekend's Shanghai Golden Grand Prix. The 38-year-old American dominated the 110m hurdles in the late 1990s and early part of this century, although his best performance this year is 13.42 seconds, half a second slower than his personal best set in 1996.

Horse racing: A possible mass boycott by Australian jockeys during the country's major races has been averted after they reached a compromise with officials over new rules restricting the use of whips. The Australian Jockeys' Association (AJA) and the Australian Racing Board (ARB) agreed to a new set of rules after riders went on strike and threatened more industrial action if their demands were not met.

Boxing: Irish Olympic boxing medallist Darren Sutherland has been found dead at his London home. Sutherland, who won bronze in the middleweight division at the 2008 Games in Beijing, was found hanged in his apartment by his manager Frank Maloney. "It is very sad and unexpected," Maloney said. "It is a tragedy for Ireland and the world of boxing." Sutherland, 27, turned professional last year.

Rugby Union: Jonah Lomu has swapped his boots for tanning lotion in an unusual bid to rekindle his rugby career. The 34-year-old, once the most feared man in rugby, plans to make a comeback in France later this year but another sport has grabbed his interest in the meantime. As part of his regime to get fit and shed some unwanted weight, Lomu has started bodybuilding and likes it so much he has entered his first competition this weekend.

Golf: Asia have recalled Japanese teenager Ryo Ishikawa for next year's Royal Trophy after he helped steer the team to victory over twice-winners Europe in January. Ishikawa, whose inclusion attracted a record crowd in the third edition, is the third player named on Naomichi Ozaki's team after Thais Prayad Marksaeng and Thongchai Jaidee, who won all of their matches in Asia's crushing 10-6 win.