Sporting briefs

Alcaraz: Wigan completed the signing of Antolin Alcaraz after the Paraguay defender was granted a work permit yesterday. Alcaraz agreed to move to the DW Stadium before the World Cup after his contract expired with Belgian side Club Brugge.

Vittek: Slovakian international striker Robert Vittek completed his move from French side Lille to Turkish outfit MKE Ankaragucu where he spent the second half of last season. Lille have not released details of the transfer which comes after Vittek spent five months on loan with the Ankara club who finished 12th last season in the Turkish league.

Totti: Francesco Totti wants to overtake Roberto Baggio in the all-time Serie A goalscoring charts next season. Totti has scored 192 goals in 442 appearances in Serie A, and is sixth on the list. Totti said: "If I play all the games then I can do it. I am 13 goals behind Baggio at the moment. I will do it in the first half of the season if I play all the games."

Donovan: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has admitted an interest in signing US forward Landon Donovan. Speaking in New York as City prepare to face Sporting Lisbon in a friendly today, Mancini said Donovan was one of the players the club are looking at.

Gosling: Newcastle completed their controversial signing of England U-21 midfielder Dan Gosling from Everton. Gosling agreed a four-year deal after the newly-promoted Premier League club exploited a loophole in the youngster's contract at St James' Park to land him on a free transfer.

Raul: Schalke coach Felix Magath says he is confident of signing Raul this summer. The Bundesliga outfit have already held talks with the Real Madrid captain and Magath believes the 33 year-old Raul is primed for a move to Gelsenkirchen. "Raul has shown in every moment his interest in signing for our team and we believe he will arrive," Magath said.

Beretta: Just over a month after being hired and without an official match played under his direction, PAOK Salonica announced yesterday that they had fired Italian coach Mario Beretta. Beretta had been hired on a two-year contract on June 14 to replace Fernando Santos, who has taken over the coaching job with the Greece national team.

Zambrotta: Veteran full-back Gianluca Zambrotta signed a one-year contract extension with Milan, the club said. The 33-year-old's contract was due to run out at the end of next season but he is now tied down until June 2012.

Cricket: World bowling record holder Muttiah Muralitharan, of Sri Lanka, reached the 800-wicket mark with his last delivery in Test cricket yesterday. The off-spinner, 38, had last man Pragyan Ojha caught at slip to terminate India's second innings on the final day of the first Test at the Galle International Stadium. Muralith-aran will retire from Test cricket after the match. Among bowlers still active, India's Harbhajan Singh leads the pack with 355 wickets.

Tennis: The Davis Cup semi-final between France and Argentina will take place on a fast indoor surface in Lyon's Gerland Sports Palace from September 17-19. It will be the fifth time that the south-eastern French city has hosted a Davis Cup tie and first since 1991 when the hosts beat the US 3-1 to lift the title for the seventh time.

Boxing: Australia's Danny Green took just 29 seconds to knock out his compatriot Paul Briggs and defend his IBO cruiserweight world title on Wednesday. Green's third successful IBO title defence lifted him to a career record of 30 wins (27 by knockout) and three defeats in 33 bouts.

Hockey: The male coach of India's women's hockey team resigned this week after allegations of sexual misconduct levelled by one of his players. The allegations against Maharaj Kaushik of sexual harassment were contained in a letter sent to the hockey federation by an unidentified player.

Formula One: American Danny Sullivan is the latest former F1 driver to become the stewards' driver advisor and will assume the role at this weekend's German Grand Prix. His role is to advise stewards on their rulings over driver-related incidents. Sullivan, 60, drove 15 times for Tyrell during the 1983 Formula One season, his best result was fifth in Monaco.

Gymnastics: World championship medallists Lauren Mitchell, Prashanth Sellathurai and Philippe Rizzo will lead Australia's gymnastics team for October's Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. The Australian women's team will be competing for their fourth consecutive team gold medal when they take to the floor at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium. Mitchell, 19, last year became the first Australian woman to win a medal in an individual apparatus final at a world championships, with silver on the beam and floor.