Watson: Wigan Athletic midfielder Ben Watson suffered a broken leg in a collision with Raheem Sterling during his side’s 3-0 defeat against Liverpool yesterday. Watson was forced off the pitch in the 32nd minute at Anfield when Liverpool winger Sterling’s knee crashed into his right leg as they contested an aerial challenge.

Keeper hurt: Dynamo Moscow’s home league match against Zenit St Petersburg was abandoned in the 36th minute yesterday after home goalkeeper Anton Shunin was injured by a firecracker thrown by the visiting team’s fans. Dynamo had taken the lead in the 27th minute e through a Vladimir Granat free-kick, but referee Alexei Nikolaev called a halt to the game nine minutes later after Shunin went down injured.

Altidore: Fiorentina are showing keen interest in AZ Alkmaar striker Jozy Altidore but the Serie A outfit could face competition from Rubin Kazan and Sporting Lisbon for the signature of the US inter-national. Fiorentina want to add another striker to their squad in January but will have to fork out around €6m to lure Altidore to their fold.

Barca: Lionel Messi continued his prolific scoring with a brace as Barcelona beat Zaragoza 3-1 last night to make the best ever start to a Liga season. Messi opened the scoring but while Francisco Montanes brought Zaragoza level, Alex Song restored the advantage before the break. Messi got his second and his 17th of the season to ensure a victory and another record with Barca’s start beating those of Real Madrid in the 1968-69 and the 1991-92 seasons.

Sanchez: Mexico great Hugo Sanchez has been sacked as coach of Pachuca amid a flurry of dismissals in the Mexican league. Also sacked were former Ecuador captain Alex Aguinaga at San Luis and Benjamin Galindo at Santos Laguna. Former Real Madrid striker Sanchez steered Pachuca to 13th place in the league phase of the championship. The top eight qualified for the KO rounds.

Clattenburg: Mark Clatten-burg will not discover the outcome of the FA’s probe into a complaint by Chelsea against the match official until this week, according to sources close to the FA. The timing of the decision means that Clattenburg could now miss refereeing a fourth weekend of matches even if the FA announce that no action will be taken.

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