Football news

Greek side Olympiacos Volos have lost their appeal to play in the Europa League play-offs, UEFA confirmed yesterday.

UEFA kicked Volos out of the tournament due to their implication in a match-fixing scandal and also handed the Greek team a three-year ban from UEFA competitions, deferred for a probationary period of five seasons.

Luxembourg’s FC Differdange, eliminated by Volos in the previous round, will take the Greek club’s place and go on to meet PSG in the competition over two legs.

Volos, who have Malta’s Andre Schembri in their ranks, have 10 days to lodge an appeal at the CAS.

Raul has no problems at Schalke

Schalke coach Ralf Rangnick insists there have been no offers for Raul despite rumours the former Spain star wants to quit the club.

Raul joined Schalke last summer after 16 years at Real Madrid and has impressed in the Bundesliga, netting 14 times in 36 games. But speculation continues to suggest the 34-year-old is not happy in Gelsen-kirchen and that his relationship with the club has broken down.

Rangnick, however, is adamant Raul has not asked to leave.

He said: “It’s the same for Raul as it is for all the players.

“If he tells me that he wants to leave then we will talk. But that is not the case at the moment. There have also been no offers for him from any other club.”

Mikel appeals for father’s safe return

Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has appealed for information on the whereabouts of his father, who has been abducted in his native Nigeria.

Mikel said he and his family are yet to hear anything regarding his father’s whereabouts or who might have taken him, and he made a direct appeal for his father’s release.

“Please just let him go. He’s just an old man, he hasn’t done any harm to anyone and I don’t know why he has been taken,” he said.

Michael Obi, who runs a transport company, has not been seen or heard from since he failed to return home from work in Jos, the capital of Plateau State in central Nigeria.

Celtic slash bank debt by £5 million

Celtic reduced their bank debt by more than £5 million after turning a loss into a small profit in the year to June 30, the club’s annual financial results show.

The club made a profit of £100,000 before tax despite a significant fall in revenue, not helped by the fact they only had two home European matches last season.

The club’s net bank debt stood at £530,000 – well down on the previous year’s total of £5.85 million and the half-year figure of £9.1 million that Celtic subsequently reported.

Celtic’s group revenue fell by more than £9 million to £52.6 million, however operating expenses were reduced by almost 10 per cent to £52.5 million.

No worries for Ibrahimovic

Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has played down fears surrounding an ankle injury suffered at the weekend, insisting the problem was “not too serious”.

The Swedish forward had to come off during his side’s 2-2 friendly draw with former club Malmo on Sunday, two weeks before Milan begin the defence of their Serie A title.

But Ibrahimovic revealed he is hopeful of not being too hampered by the injury.

“At one point I twisted my ankle but I really wanted to stay on the pitch as the crowd was fantastic,” he said.

“I couldn’t go on though after an hour. The ankle really hurts at the moment, but the doctor has told me that it’s not too serious.”

WCup only for the rich – Romario

Former Brazil star Romario said he believed the upcoming World Cup in his homeland would not engage normal Brazilians but be an event only for those with money.

“Ticket prices will be absurd. So, unfortunately the World Cup will not be for the Brazilian people. Brazilian people who like football, follow it passionately on a day-to-day basis. They are mainly from the C, D and E (social) classes,” Romario stated.

Romario said he believed the country would struggle to stage the tournament.

“Only Jesus could save us. Only He could help Brazil stage the best ever World Cup,” he said.

Arteta continues comeback in Ireland friendly

Everton assistant manager Steve Round was pleased to see midfielder Mikel Arteta step up his recovery from a foot injury in Monday night’s friendly against Irish side Bohemians.

The Spaniard played 68 minutes of the 1-1 draw as he continued his comeback.

“He has taken another step closer to being fully fit,” said Round.

“He has missed most of pre-season with a foot injury and now he has got those minutes under his belt, which is important.”

The friendly was hastily-arranged after Everton’s opening match of the Premier League against Tottenham was postponed in the aftermath of the riots in London.